My Red Rosebud
by Vanishing Trooper
Summary: A tie-in story for my other fic "Attraction and Repulsion". YumiXOC
1. Chapter 1

**Authors's Note:** This is basically a teaser for my next fic which will be a YumiXOC fic (The OC being Ryou) which I'll put on this page in the future so IT'S NOT A ONESHOT! If anyone is confused by this, let me explain. I'm planning to do a series of fics in the same timeline tying-in and affecting other fics. So this fic will happen at roughly the same time as "Attraction and Repulsion". Get it? I'll just give you some things about Ryou. And how he and Yumi first met...Trust me the way they met will make sense when you think about it. Ah! And I'll be tying-in another anime for my little timeline. Nothing radical, just something to associate Ryou with. See if you can find out what anime it is. There's actally a hint hidden here in this summary! LOL! Anyhoo...enjoy.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing in this fic that can be used against me in a court of law.

Ryou will be narrating this entry...

When I was seven years old. I used to wander around our backyard garden. It was really nice there, my favorite place was the Red Rose Bush my aunt gave my mom after she became a nun. Weird huh? My aunt...a nun. One day, in a gloomy June afternoon, there was rain...well, there's always rain in June but that's not the point. When I looked at the garden to see the rose bush I saw that my mom had put up some cover for them which made me pretty happy but...there was one that wasn't being covered. It was a red rosebud. It was being continuously bombarded by the rain and I was worried that it could die before getting a chance to bloom. So, with my little seven year old brain in charge, I went out into the backyard and put up an umbrella to cover the rose bud. Just so happens that my mom was checking up on me and saw the whole thing. Boy, did I ever got a scolding.

"Honestly Ryou! What were you thinking! You could catch a cold doing something like that." My mom scolded me mercilessly. But, what can I say? She's a mom.

"But I didn't want that rosebud getting getting soaked in the rain. It might die." My seven year old self reasoned.

"But the rose bud is still soaked because it was already wet before you put up that umbrella." My mom's logic is superb!

"Yeah...but..." I looked at the rosebud which was being protected by the umbrella I put up. "It won't get soaked anymore. I'm sure it will dry off soon and bloom into a beautiful rose." I said smiling to my mom. She could only smile and give me a hug.

...

Ten years have passed since then. By the way...I never told you my name did I? It's Ryou...Miyamoto Ryou. I hail from a small town in southern Hokaido. I'm currently in Tokyo attending a University. You may be wondering what the hell a Seventeen year old did to get into College. Well, after my first year in Highschool, some people thought that I was a genius and could already hold my own in College. Apparently they were right as I managed to pass the aptitude exam to qualify in a number of Universities. After long and serious consideration (I picked the name out of a hat) I had picked this school...Nekomi Institute of Technology.

I'm currently starting my second year here. I'm taking Mechanical Engineering as my major and I even joined the campus' Motor Club. Sometime's though...I wish I hadn't...

"MIYAMOTOOOOO!!" A bellowing voice roared in the club house (Heck, it was too small to be called a house. It's more like a shack or a tool shed more than anything). That was one of the Motor Club chairmen. There are apparently two of them.

"Yes...What is it now Tamiya-sempai?" I asked.

"Are you sure you don't want to come over to live in our dorm? It would be much easier than living in an apartment on your own!" Tamiya-sempai said as he patted...smacked...my back repeatedly.

"I'm fine Tamiya-sempai. Besides...Isn't it a little late to ask me to join your dorm? I've been here for over a year afterall." I said while trying to get away.

"That's true...But we figured that, if we let you on your own for a while, you will eventually crumble in the stress of living by yourself and come crying to your sempais for help." Leave the prodigal son out to starve and wait for him to come crawling back huh?

"Sorry to dissapoint but I'm doing just fine." I said as I walk out of the club room.

"Where are you going?" Tamiya-sempai asks.

"Classes. Pease tell Morisato-sempai and Belldandy-sempai that I'll have the results of the small-scale simulation for the new racer by the end of the week." I said before closing the door.

...

Living on my own HAS been a challenge in my first year here. Afterall, I'm still supposed to be only in Highschool. But thankfully, fate smiled on me. I managed to get a pretty good deal in an apartment. The only problem was that it was a bit of a way off from school. But that's okay, that's what the railway system is for. Today was pretty light and I got off from school a little after lunch. I headed my way back to my apartment. I still had a lot of stuff to finish. I had to walk up and down a hill to get from the train station to the apartment building. There were two school's there. An all-boys school and an all-girls school. Made me wonder several times why they didn't just put the two together. I was passing the girls school when I remembered something.

"That's right...I still have to deliver this..." I looked in my backpack and pulled out a box. I smiled and put the box back in my bag as I headed into the school. Lilian all-girls catholic school to be precise. I observed the campus as I walked along. It was...solem to say the least. This is a school where rich, well to do girls get their education. I always though that this place was full of snooty prima-donnas who couldn't care less for a small town guy like me. Thankfully, I'm not here for them.

I went into one of the old buildings. The route I took was repeated so many times that I can probably do it in my sleep. I stopped at the door of my destination.

"Office of the Head of the Academy huh?" I smiled at the thought. I knocked on the door.

"Yes? Who is it?" The voice of a sweet old...well...kinda old lady said.

"It's me...Ryou." I replied.

"Oh yes! Come in. Come in." The voice eagerly said.

"It's nice to see you again...Aunt Kaori."

...

Remember when I said that my aunt became a nun? Well, she didn't just become a nun. She became the head of this whole academy. Cool huh? Aunt Kaori is the elder sister of my mom. I heard that, when she said that she was going to a convent to become a nun, my mom locked herself in her room and wouldn't come out saying that Aunt Kaori can't leave if she can't say goodbye to my mom. Of course, she eventually came out and the rest was history. Which brings me to why I'm here. I hand Aunt Kaori the box in my bag.

"Sorry if it's a little late. Mom was busy at work." I said as my Aunt took the box and opened it. What was inside? Steamed buns. My mom makes killer steamed buns and Aunt Kaori is her biggest fan. So, she and mom set me up to be a delivery boy between them for steamed buns and other packages they might want delivered. Lucky me...

"Delicious as always..." My Aunt said after she took a bite from one of the buns. She sure likes those stuff.

"Glad you like them." I said.

"Oh yes! Would you care for some tea?" This was my compensation for being their delivery boy. There are several hidden family recipies divided among the members of my mom's side of the family. Even I got one of the recepies from my grandmother before she passed away, that's how the recipies get passed on...but that's something for another day. The recipie that my mom got was for the steamed buns. And my Aunt? Jasmine tea.

"Yes please...I would love some." My aunt can make Jasmine tea better than anyone I know.

I said my goodbyes and headed back out of the school. Being a guy in and all-girls catholic school made me feel a bit...tense. I made my way back to my apartment to get some work done. Just another day...

...

It was late June and it's been raining for a while now. It was late afternoon and I was on my shift at a convenience store somewhere near Lilian academy. I get living expenses from my parent every month but most of it goes to my rent. I had to take up some part-time jobs to make up for it. This was one of them. I was assigned to do inventory and cleanup.

"Almost quitting time Ryou. You can go ahead and finish up." The manager said.

"Thanks! I'll just finish this first." I was in the middle of restocking some soda in the fridge. That was when a customer came in. It was a student from Lilian. I know because I've seen their uniforms before. The girl was a bit shorter than me and with brown hair in pigtails. She looked depressed for some reason.

"Not that it's any of my bussiness." I said as I finished up and headed to the back of the store to get my things.

"Thanks a lot for your hard work Ryou!" The manager said before I left.

"Hey! That's what you pay me for." I said before walking out. When I got out I noticed that it was still raining. Good thing I always carry an umbrella. But after I opened it and got ready to go home I caught sight of that girl again. She was walking...in the rain...without an umbrella. Was that the reason why she was depressed? I didn't know. Part of me said not to get involved. But...

The way she looked.

The way the rain bombarded her.

It reminded me of that time.

I'm not sure if what I was thinking but I ran to the girl and put her under the cover of my umbrella. The girl, probably confused as to why the rain suddenly stopped, looked for the cause. Me...

She didn't say anything and just kept walking. I simply followed her.

"Ryou..." She looked at me with sad and confused eyes.

"My name...It's Ryou." I said.

"...Yumi." Was all she said.

Nothing was said for the rest of the time. Until we got to her house. It was pretty interestingly designed. She started to walk towards the door. I wanted to go with her but my gut told me not to. Because I didn't follow her, she got wet again but she stopped before getting to the door. She turned around to look at me. She still had those sad eyes. All she did was bow to me. I guess that was her way of thanking me. I bowed to her as well and made my way back to my apartment.

Just like that Red Rosebud. That girl must have had a problem like that rose bud did when it was soaked in the rain. But...just like when the rose bud was still wet even after I put it under an umbrella. It won't get wet anymore and dry off soon enough. I'm sure that, even though that girl is going through something difficult right now, she'll find a way to overcome it somehow.

Just like that Red Rosebud...

...

So...what do you think?


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything on this fic that can be used against me in a court of law.**

**Note:** This story starts immediately after the 2nd season meaning after the 'Rainy Blue arc' and a little before the 1st OVA. That means that this story began before Attraction & Repulsion.

...

It's been a few days since the incident in the rain and Ryou hasn't been able to stop thinking about Yumi. He has a personality that makes him worry about loose ends and in this case, the loose end is Yumi.

_I wonder if she's okay now…Damn, this can't be good for me._ Ryou thought.

"Miyamoto-san! Miyamoto-san!" Ryou suddenly snapped in attention at the voice of the professor.

"Y—yes sir?" Ryou said, a bit rattled. The professor sighed.

"Please pay attention Miyamoto-san. This WILL be in the exam next month." The professor said to him.

"Yes sir. Sorry about that." Ryou apologized.

_Yeah…definitely not good. I have to make SOME KIND of closure on this._ Ryou thought before listening to the lecture.

...

It was after class and Ryou had a couple of hours to kill so he decided to hang out at the Motor Club. Belldandy and Urd were there chatting.

"You seem a bit down Ryou-san." Belldandy noticed.

"Oh? No…It's nothing serious." Ryou said.

"Are you sure? You don't normally sulk like that." Urd interjected, poking Ryou's head with her finger.

"Sulk? I'm not sulking…And why are you here anyway? Don't you have a job or something to keep you busy like the rest of humanity?" That earned Ryou a good beat down from the silver-haired goddess. Keiichi entered the clubhouse and saw Urd giving Ryou a generous half-nelson while Belldandy tried to calm down her older sister.

"Did I miss something?" Keiichi asked.

"Keiichi-san!" Belldany's face lit up at the sight of him.

"Morisato-sempai! Heeeelp!" Ryou called out to him.

"Oh no! Keiichi won't save you this time!" Urd said as she tightened the lock. K-1 felt a sweat drop.

"Just another day huh?" K-1 said while managing a weak laugh.

...

Yumi was really happy for several reasons:

-She and Sachiko were back in good terms.

-She and Touko were back in good terms (sort of).

-All the crazy rumors about her and Sachiko breaking off their Soeur-ship have been obliterated.

-It was Summer Vacation soon.

Though, through all the things that have gone right with her, Yumi still had a lingering feeling that came from the past month.

_That guy who helped me before…His name was Ryou. I wonder how he's doing now?_ Yumi thought. When July started, Ryou quit his part-time job at the convenience store for preparation for the brutal summer schedule of competitions that the motor club has and the upcoming exams. Yumi never got the chance to thank him properly.

"Yumi-san?" A familiar voice called out to her. Yumi snapped out of her thoughts and looked at her friend: Shimazu Yoshino.

"What is it Yoshino-san?" Yumi obliviously asked.

"Other than you spacing out again? Geez! I thought you didn't have any problems anymore?" Yoshino asked while placing her hands on her hips. Before Yumi could answer, she heard the snap of a camera shutter and that only means one thing in Lilian…

"What is this? Rosa Chinensis En Bouton is spacing out again?" Tsutako asked before taking another picture. Behind her was Mami.

"I thought that the issues with Matsudaira Touko and Rosa Chinensis were already resolved?" Mami asked Yumi.

"They were…but…" Yumi trailed off.

"But…?" Mami asked while she, Yoshino and Tsutako leaned closer to Yumi. Our heroine suddenly thought back to what happened with her and Ryou, Yumi sighed at the memory.

"Yumi-san?" Tsutako called out but the teacher entered the room before any further inquiries could be made.

...

"Ready to Go, Count ZERO Kamen Raidaa AGITO!" Ryou was currently singing the opening song of Kamen Rider Agito while walking up the hill where Lilian and Hanadera were.

...

Yumi was walking towards the gate along with Sachiko. They were chatting about summer and Yumi poked around to see if Sachiko would be willing to go with her to an amusement park soon.

"Come on Onee-sama. It'll be fun!" Yumi said in her usual cheerful tone. Sachiko always loved this side of Yumi but she just wasn't in the mood to travel to a really crowded place with lots of things that can toss people around at high speeds.

"Maybe some other time Yumi. We still have a lot of work to finish before summer vacation starts." Sachiko wiggled her way out of the situation once again.

"Aww!" Yumi whined.

...

"Ima kimi ga inai to... Get on!"

...

"Why do we have so much work before vacation anyway? It's not fair." Yumi pouted.

"That's no way for Rosa Chinensis En Bouton to behave." Sachiko reprimanded her soeur but with a gentle tone.

...

"Here we go, Count ZERO Kamen Raida—oooff!" Ryou was too caught up in the moment of singing the oh-so-hot-blooded song that he failed to notice Yumi and Sachiko walking out of Lilian and he consequently bumped into Yumi. He managed to grab on to Yumi and prevented the girl from falling down. Sachiko helped Yumi regain her balance as Yumi looked up to see who she bumped into.

"I'm really sorry abo--" Yumi never got to finish her sentence as Ryou pointed at her with a surprised expression.

"It's you!" Ryou exclaimed. Yumi wondered what he was talking about. After a few moments she remembered who he was.

"R—Ryou-san?" Yumi asked. Ryou nodded.

"Yumi-san…right?" Ryou asked. Yumi nodded. Sachiko wasn't sure what the hell was happening at the moment but decided to find out.

"Excuse me Yumi but, do you know this person?" Sachiko asked her petit soeur. Yumi looked at her Onee-sama and back at Ryou then back at Sachiko.

"Sort of…" Yumi said. Ryou then cleared his throat and got the attention of both girls. They looked at the young man.

"Hi there. I'm Miyamoto Ryou. I met Yumi-san a few days ago in an…interesting fashion." Ryou said. Sachiko raised an eyebrow at his words.

"Interesting Fashion?" Sachiko wondered. She looked at Yumi for an explanation.

"Umm…well…Remember when I told you about that time I lost my umbrella? Ryou-san had an umbrella at the time and he escorted me home." Yumi told the queen. Ryou nodded at Yumi's words.

"You should have seen her. She was walking in the rain and had a look that seemed like the world just ended. There was no way in hell that I could've ignored her like that so I did what I thought was right." Sachiko's eyes went wide at Ryou's words.

"Was this when…" Sachiko didn't finish the sentence because she already knew the answer. Both Red Roses went silent after that.

_I'm so sorry Yumi…_ Sachiko thought. The sudden silence of the two girls made Ryou blink a couple of times.

"I'm sorry…Did I miss something?" Ryou asked the girls. They just looked at each other then at Ryou.

"You two are still here?" Shimako asked as she and Noriko walked towards the gate. Rei and Yoshino had Kendo training that afternoon. Everyone looked at the source of the voice.

"Shimako-san…Noriko-san." Yumi said.

"Are the two of you waiting for anyone?" Noriko asked before she saw Ryou.

"Oh…" Noriko added. Ryou bowed to the new arrivals.

"Hi, I'm Ryou, Miyamoto Ryou." Ryou greeted the girls. Sachiko suddenly remembered something.

"Oh! I'm sorry. I haven't introduced myself yet have I?" Sachiko asked. She bowed to Ryou slightly.

"My name is Ogasawara Sachiko. Thank you for helping Yumi before." Sachiko told Ryou out of pure courtesy (She dislikes men remember?).

"I'm Todo Shimako." Shimako bowed as well.

"And I'm Nijo Noriko." Noriko went with the flow. Ryou bowed as well.

"A pleasure…" The Nekomi Student replied. As usual, Yumi had her emotion written on her face. Today's emotion is: Hesitation.

"Yumi?" Sachiko called out to her Petit Soeur.

"Ah! Yes! Oh…" Yumi realized what she just did.

"I'm sorry for spacing out like that!" Yumi said.

"It's alright Yumi." Sachiko said in a sweet tone. Yumi turned to Ryou.

"Thanks again for before. Really, thank you." Yumi told Ryou in a sincere way.

"No problem, just glad that you're okay now." Ryou said with a smile. Shimako and Noriko looked at each other as they really didn't know what was going on. Sachiko remained expressionless at the exchange.

"Well, I gotta go. And I think that you ladies have to as well. So…Seeya!" Ryou said as he waved to the girls and started walking away. The Roses just looked at him until he disappeared down the hill.

"So…I never knew that you had a guy Yumi-sama." Noriko said offhandedly. Yumi AND Sachiko flinched at Noriko's words.

"Wha?! No! He's just someone who helped me before! That's all!" Yumi emphatically denied. Sachiko had a worried look on her face. Noriko had her eyebrow raised. Shimako simply stood there and watched the whole thing like she always does (I swear, she's like Belldandy redux).

...

_At least she's okay now…_ Ryou thought.

_At least I got to thank him properly…_ Yumi thought.

...

_I was walking in the rain…_

_Someone took away my lucky umbrella … _

_I was alone…_

_Onee-sama wasn't there…_

_Yuuki wasn't there…_

_Yoshino-san wasn't there…_

_Sei-sama wasn't there…_

_Youko-sama wasn't there…_

_No one was there…_

_I looked around…_

_Ryou-san should have been there…_

_But he wasn't…_

_I was alone…_

_When I got home…Mom…Dad…and Yuuki were…_

_worried…_

_scared…_

_I was too…_

_I was alone that night…_

_Why wasn't he there…?_

...

Yumi woke up in a cold sweat. She looked around and saw that it was still dark outside. She turned to her clock.

"2:42am?" Yumi wondered. She normally doesn't wake up in the middle of the night even from a nightmare. And her dream wasn't a 'nightmare' in the conventional sense of the word. No, it wasn't scary but it wasn't pretty either.

_That felt too real. I can still feel my cold, rain-soaked uniform._ Yumi thought as she wrapped her arms around herself.

_That felt…very sad…I'm glad that didn't really happen. I'm glad he was there…_Yumi smiled at the thought. She lay back down on her bed and went back to sleep. She didn't have that nightmare anymore.

...

_I hate morning classes…_Was the immediate thought of Ryou as the early morning sun partially blinded him on his way to school. Schedule shifts weren't anything new for him, but it really didn't make him feel any better about it. He was wearing a red T-shirt with the logo of the Galm Squadron from Ace Combat Zero on it, his blue jeans and sneakers. He also carried a shoulder bag with him. He shrugged at the sight of Lilian students walking along the same path as he is.

"Why do I feel so out of place?" Ryou said to himself. He then saw a welcomed sight. He saw Yumi exiting the bus in front of Lilian along with Sachiko. He approached the pair and greeted them.

"Mornin'…" He said. The girls looked at him and smiled…well, one of them did.

"Gokigenyo Ryou-san." Yumi greeted. Sachiko bowed to Ryou.

"Gokigenyo Miyamoto-san" Sachiko greeted. She was still on defense with Ryou.

"Goki ladies." Ryou sort-of returned the greeting.

"Are you on your way to school?" Yumi asked the young man.

"Last time I checked…yeah." Ryou replied. He looked around and saw that some girls were looking at them while entering the school.

"I'd better go." Ryou said to the girls.

"Huh? Why? Are you going to be late?" Yumi asked.

"That…and the fact that your schoolmates have been looking at us funny. I don't think that a weird rumor is what you need in the morning so…" Ryou started walking away after saying that. Yumi and Sachiko looked around and saw that Ryou was right. Yumi turned back to Ryou but he was already gone.

"Ryou-san…" Yumi wondered why he wanted to get away from Lilian so badly. She then felt a hand on her shoulders. She saw that it was from Sachiko.

"Onee-sama…" Yumi regarded Sachiko.

"Let's go. We're going to be late for the morning meeting." Sachiko said with a smile. Yumi nodded and looked back to where Ryou went off to.

_Have a nice day Ryou-san._

...

Contrary to Yumi's wishes, Ryou was currently having a pretty bad day. His professor in Applied Mechanics was grilling him because he submitted his report 3 days after the due date.

"Do you expect me to accept this Miyamoto-san?!" The uptight professor asked Ryou sarcastically.

"But I was only late because we had an emergency at the Motor Clu--" Ryou was suddenly interrupted.

"Aha! I knew that place was bad news. You have so much potential for someone so young. You shouldn't associate yourself with a bunch of punks like that." The professor said. Ryou balled his right hand into a fist at the professor's words.

"They're not punks!" Ryou raised his voice in defense of his Clubmates. The professor was taken aback by Ryou's sudden outburst.

"Be that as it may, I still cannot accept this. You may just make up for it in the exams next month." The professor said while adjusting his glasses. Ryou cursed under his breath and walked away. Arguing with someone who is prejudiced and close minded is pointless. As he closed the door to the faculty room he saw the professor scoff at his report and throw it in the trash.

_Bastard… _Ryou though.

...

"He's always been like that." Keiichi said after hearing Ryou's story.

"But it's so unfortunate. Ryou-san worked to hard to finish that report even though he knew that he wouldn't make the deadline." Belldandy sympathized to Ryou.

"Want me to go pay him a visit?" Urd asked her younger sister (yeah…she was there again.) Belldandy shook her head.

"That won't solve anything." Belldandy countered.

"Yeah, but it'll feel good." Urd said with an evil grin. Ryou was actually tempted to ask Urd to payback the professor for what he did, he had heard the stories of Urd's ability to reap vengeance for the wronged, but decided not to do it. It was the rule to pass reports on time by any means necessary, even IF the professor was a prick.

"It's fine…It's not like it's the end of the world. I'll just have to try even harder next time." Ryou said.

"That's right. There will always be people like that so you can't let one of them get you down." Keiichi said. Ryou nodded at his sempai's words.

"Damn right." Ryou said. Tamiya and Ohtaki suddenly burst into the club room.

_Aww crap…_Ryou thought. It was only a matter of time before the chairmen of the Nekomi Institute of Technology Motor Club heard the news.

_It was actually faster than I thought…_Keiichi thought. The two men pushed aside Keiichi and grabbed Ryou.

"What did that bastard say to you Miyamoto?!" Tamiya asked. His massive arms easily lifted up Ryou.

"He just said that I should pass my reports on time." Ryou lied. The last thing the club needed was for their chairmen to threaten or even harm a professor.

"That's all?" Ohtaki asked.

"Yep…now could you please let me down. This feels way too creepy." Ryou said while flailing his legs which were a good two feet off the ground.

"Oh, right!" Tamiya then dropped Ryou like a bad habit.

"I'm amazed that you two were actually worried about him." Urd said.

"Actually, Miyamoto's situation is very important for us." Ohtaki said with confidence. Tamiya nodded.

"Indeed! If he doesn't pass his subjects then he would bring shame upon the Motor Club." Tamiya said emphatically. Ryou felt a sweat drop.

"I think you two embarrass the club more than I ever could." Ryou said.

"What was that?!" Both men asked.

"Nothing…you heard nothing." Ryou said flatly while raising his hands in defense.

...

"I heard a rumor that you are seeing a guy Yumi-san." Yoshino casually asked. She, Yumi, Tsutako, and Mami were talking amongst themselves again while waiting for classes to start. The other three girls froze at Yoshino's question. It took four seconds before Mami finally snapped out of the daze and looked at Yumi.

"WHAT?!" Mami exclaimed. The other three girls quickly covered her mouth but it was too late. They looked around and saw that the whole class was looking at them. Yoshino faked a laugh and scratched her head.

"Sorry about that…um…carry on." Yoshino said and the rest of the class went back to their own things. Mami finally managed to remove the collective silence imposed upon her by her friends (read: their hands on her mouth). As she tried to catch her breath, Tsutako turned back to Yumi to ask the obvious question.

"Is that true Yumi-san? Are you really seeing a guy?" Tsutako asked with a serious face. Yumi sighed at her friends' reactions.

_So this is what he meant…_Yumi thought. If her close friends reacted this way to a rumor then she didn't want to know what the rest of the school might think. I wonder if the Virgin Mary ever condoned the spreading of rumors and the like.

"No it's not. And where did you hear this from Yoshino-san?" Yumi asked her friend.

"I just overheard some first years talking about seeing you with a guy in front of the school gate. There were also rumors that the same guy has been seen in the school premises before so everyone thought that he was your secret boyfriend or something." Yoshino said. Mami then facepalmed at Yoshino's statement.

"I can't believe that such a juicy rumor went right under my nose…" Mami mused.

"I don't think that's the issue right now Mami-san." Yumi told her intrepid journalist friend.

"But it was true that you were talking to a guy in front of the school gate this morning right?" Tsutako pushed the issue.

"Uh huh." Yumi nodded. The three girls went wide eyed.

"Then it IS true that you are seeing a guy!" Yoshino said, almost attracting the attention of the class again. Yumi shook her head.

"Stop taking things in context. It's true that I was talking to him this morning but he's just an acquaintance. I really don't know the first thing about him except his name." Yumi explained.

"So…what's his name then?" Mami asked while brandishing her trademark notepad. Yumi's other two friends nodded at Mami's question.

"His name? It's Miyamoto Ryou-san. Other than that, I don't know anything about him. He seems to be a university student though." Yumi said. She noticed her friends nod at her statements while Mami wrote Ryou's name on her notepad.

"If you don't know anything about him then how did you two meet?" Yoshino poked on.

"Umm…that's…a bit personal. It happened when I lost my umbrella and during the time when Onee-sama and I were…" Yumi struggled with her words until Yoshino placed a hand on her shoulder. She saw her friends with apologetic smiles.

"Sorry if we pushed the issue too much. You don't have to say anything else if you don't want to." Yoshino said. Tsutako and Mami nodded.

"Yoshino-san…Tsutako-san…Mami-san…" Yumi was touched by the understanding of her friends.

"Don't worry. I'll make sure that I find out everything there is to know about this guy." Mami said confidently.

"Eh?" Yumi said while having her 'ZOMGWTF' face.

"And I'll take some pictures of him for the profile." Tsutako added.

"Umm…" Yumi tried (pathetically) to stop her friends' train of thought.

"And if he turns out to be a creep then I'll send the entire Kendo Club at him. That'll teach him to take advantage of Yumi-san!" Yoshino finished.

"Umm…everyone…" Yumi called out. Her friends turned to her with determined eyes and gave her a thumbs-up.

"Just leave everything to us." The all said in unison.

_That can't be good…_Yumi thought to herself.

...

"Miyamoto-kun." A voice called out to Ryou. The young man turned to the source of the voice.

"Mishima-sempai…wussup?" He said. Over the past year, he managed to forge a friendship with The Queen of Nekomi Institute of Technology. It hadn't been the easiest thing to do but Sayoko warmed up to him like how she warmed up to everyone in the Motor Club.

"I heard from Morisato-kun what that professor did to you. Do you want me to have him axed?" Sayoko asked. Ryou felt a sweat drop.

_Am I the only one who DOESN'T want vengeance?_ He thought.

"No worries. If I can't take care of my own problems then I'm not much of a man." Ryou said.

"Ohh…playing it cool huh?" Sayoko said while giving him a nudge. Ryou blushed a bit at Sayoko's action. Friend or not, she was still the most attractive student in the university after Belldandy.

"How old are you?" Ryou asked sarcastically.

"For your information, I am only twenty-one." Sayoko scoffed at his question. You know how women are when it comes to their age.

"Anyway, what's wrong? You didn't call me just to make fun of me now did you?" Ryou asked his sempai. Sayoko moved closer to him.

"And what if I did?" Sayoko said in a sultry voice.

"What?!" Ryou said, he had a 'WTFBBQ' face. Sayoko started giggling.

"Sorry…It's just way too fun to tease you sometimes." Sayoko admitted.

"Whatever…now, what is this about?" Ryou went back into topic. Sayoko decided to become serious as well.

"Right, I want to tell you that Aoishima is planning something again against your Motor Club, just a heads up." Sayoko said with a smile.

"What else is new? Well, at least we know its coming. Thanks for the heads up Mishima-sampai." Ryou said.

"Hey, that's what friends are for." Sayoko said.

"Tell me Mishima-sempai…" Ryou said. Sayoko wondered at Ryou's sudden change of tone.

"What is it?" The Queen of Nekomi asked.

"Are you still after Morisato-sempai? I mean…we all know that nothing on earth can break his bond with Belldandy-sempai…" Ryou trailed off. He knew that it wasn't his business but he hated seeing his friends in pain while he can't do anything about it. Sayoko lowered her head.

"Yeah…I know. No matter what I try, I already lose before I start. If I just gave him a chance before he met Belldandy then maybe…" Sayoko trailed off.

"Sempai…" Ryou said. Sayoko gave him a weak smile.

"Don't worry…even I know when to give up. I know when to move on. It won't be easy though." Sayoko admitted.

"Hey…at least you won't be alone." Ryou said. Sayoko looked at him in surprise.

"Huh?" She wondered.

"That's what friends are for. Morisato-sempai and Belldandy-sempai are included of course." He said with confidence.

"Yeah…thanks Miyamoto-kun." Sayoko said. A heavy weight seemed to lift off her shoulders.

...

"Kamen RAIDAA! Kuro no BODY! Kamen RAIDAA! Ma Kaname! Kamen RAIDAA Black! RX!" Ryou was singing the opening song of Kamen Rider Black RX while walking home (seeing a pattern?) He passed the gates of Lilian and was greeted with a surprised voice.

"Ryou-san!" Yumi exclaimed. Tsutako and Mami were with her. Sachiko was on cleaning duty (Yeah…The Queen of Lilian was CLEANING! I kid you not!)

"Oh…Yumi-san. Goki." He greeted. Mami and Tsutako looked at each other.

"That's him?" Mami asked Yumi. The Rosa Chinensis En Bouton nodded.

"Huh?" Ryou wondered what the hell was going on when Mami approached him and started asking him questions while Tsutako was taking pictures of him.

_What the hell?!_ Ryou thought.

_Sorry about this Ryou-san…_ Yumi thought.

...

Note: Just a little something for those who didn't fully get a few details in the chapter.

-Yumi's dream in this chapter was actually what happened to her on the canonical timeline in the anime/novel.

-Aoishima was that ass-hat who tried to get into Belldandy's pants in Ah! My Goddess. In my timeline, GOKI-land is owned by the Aoishima group.

-Tamiya is that huge guy who always wears a tank-top in Ah! My Goddess.

-Ohtaki is the slim guy who wears a biker jacket all the time and has blonde spiked hair and sparkplug earrings in Ah! My Goddess.

-Mishima Sayoko is the so-called Queen of Nekomi. She was the one Keiichi asked to have a date in the museum with in his freshman year, she turned him down. She eventually fell for Keiichi but was too late as he already had Belldandy. She considers Belldandy as her friend and rival.

-K-1 is shorthand for 'Keiichi'.

-Ryou is a Kamen Rider fan.

-Ryou's birthday is on November 23. This explains why he's still seventeen when he's supposed to be born in the same year as Sachiko and Rei.

-Ryou does not know that Belldandy and her sisters are Goddesses.

-In this timeline: K-1, Belldandy, Sayoko, Aoishima are in their third year in Nekomi. Ryou, Megumi (K-1s younger sister), and Hasegawa Sora (Glasses girl member of the Motor Club) are in their second year. Tamiya and Ohtaki are unknowns as they always were.

-Skuld WILL eventually make her appearance and so will Hasegawa and Megumi. Peorth, Lind, Mara, Chihiro and other AMG characters are still to be determined but doubtful.

-In my timeline, Nekomi has their first semester final exams in august followed by a three week break.

-Both Lilian and Nekomi Institute of Technology are located in Tokyo but in different districts. Nekomi is assumed to be near the main district of Tokyo due to the fact that several episodes of AMG use Tokyo Tower. Lilian is "somewhere else in Tokyo" that's why Ryou only needs to take a short train ride between his school and apartment.

-Ryou's apartment is located in the Market Avenue near Lilian which is also where he gets his groceries. He lives in an apartment much like the setup of Katou Kei but in a small apartment complex. The distance between his apartment and Lilian is comparable to the distance between Lilian and the home of Hasekura Rei and Shimazu Yoshino.

-The next chapters will touch on the OVAs starting with 'Vacation of the Lambs'.

-Touko and Kanako WILL make appearances of course since this story was a by-product of theirs. There will be scenes from their fic but from the perspective of Yumi and Ryou.

Please R&R if you can.


	3. Chapter 3

LIGHTSPEED UPDATE IS UPDATED AT LIGHTSPEED!

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything on this fic that can be used against me in a court of law.**

...

Ryou was currently being blasted with several questions by Mami and was getting photographed by Tsutako so much that he felt like an animal in a nature documentary

Ryou was currently being blasted with several questions by Mami and was getting photographed by Tsutako so much that he felt like an animal in a nature documentary. He turned to Yumi who was covering her mouth with her hands; her eyes betrayed a pained and worried look.

_Why is it that, whenever I encounter that girl, something weird and annoying happens to me?_ Ryou wondered as he tried to get away from Mami and Tsutako.

"Why are you trying to get away? Is there something you are hiding, a dirty little secret that you don't want to get out?" Mami continued with the questions as Tsutako kept snapping away at her camera.

"Mami-san! Tsutako-san! Please leave him alone!" Yumi yelled. This was the very first time that they heard Yumi yell like that. Everyone, including Ryou, stopped in their tracks and looked at Yumi.

"Please stop bothering Ryou-san. He hasn't done anything to deserve the treatment you're giving him. He was there when no one else was. Even though I was a complete stranger to him, he still went out of his way to help me. So I won't allow you to treat him badly like that." Yumi said in a stern tone that was thought to be non-existent in the usually gentle girl. Ryou scratched his head to what Yumi just said. He never thought that what he did was anything special. After a year of cleaning up his sempai's messes at the Motor Club, he was used to helping people even though he really had nothing to gain from it.

"You didn't have to say it like that. There's no need to glorify what I did. I mean, it was just coincidence that I spotted you at that time." Ryou sheepishly said. Yumi shook her head at his words.

"It may have been just a coincidence but the point is that you WERE there. That's all that really mattered." Yumi said. Ryou went silent. Mami and Tsutako looked at each other.

_Jeez…this girl's really grateful for what I did. That's something new. _Ryou thought. He got thanks for helping people before, no biggie, but he never thought that anyone would think of him as 'The one who single-handedly saved me'. Yumi was also surprised at what she was saying.

_What's wrong with me? I never yell…and why do I defend him so much. He's right; it was all just coincidence that we even met. So…why?_ Yumi thought.

(Insert awkward pause here…)

"Umm…listen…" Ryou spoke, breaking the silence. The girls looked at him.

"I'm really flattered that you're so grateful to me but, really, it was no big deal so you don't owe me or anything." Ryou said to Yumi.

"Yeah…I guess you're right." Yumi replied.

"Well, now that's been cleared up, I'll get going. See you around Yumi-san." Ryou said before walking away. Yumi nodded.

"See you, Ryou-san." Yumi bid farewell to Ryou. She then turned to Tsutako and Mami, the two girls felt a chill down their spine.

"That was a horrible thing you did…" Yumi said. Her friends had their heads lowered.

"Sorry about that Yumi-san." Tsutako apologized.

"Yeah, we just wanted to see if he really is a good guy and not just someone who wants to take advantage of you. We weren't going to publish what we found out or anything like that." Mami added. Yumi's expression softened.

_So, they really were just worried about me…_ Yumi smiled at the thought.

"It's okay. At least now you know that Ryou-san is not a bad guy." Yumi told her friends.

"Yeah, he seems to be on the level." Mami said.

"And he's kind of cute too." Tsutako added. Yumi and Mami stared at her.

"What?" Tsutako asked. The two girls looked at each other and sighed.

"Nothing…" They both replied.

...

It was Sunday and everyone was suffering from the beating summer sun. Some people had the good sense of bringing umbrellas to hide from the rays; Ryou was not one of them today.

_Of all the times I forgot my umbrella…_ Ryou complained as he covered his eyes from the glare with his hand. He brought along his backpack today but he forgot that his umbrella was in his shoulder bag. He cursed at his error. Ryou was on his way to his new part-time job. Since he quit his regular job at the convenience store he had to find another way to make ends meet so he got a job at a flower shop. Desperate times call for desperate desperateness.

As he was walking along he noticed a familiar face come out of a bookstore.

_Yumi-san?_ Ryou thought he saw Yumi, but because of the glare he couldn't be sure. So, he decided to check it out.

"Hey there Yumi-san." Ryou greeted but he was in for a bit of a surprise. The person that he saw was not Yumi, but her younger brother Yuuki.

"Huh? Who the hell are you?! You're not Yumi-san!" Ryou exclaimed. His reaction is understandable considering that Yuuki and Yumi look a lot alike. Yuuki wondered who Ryou is and how he knew Yumi.

"Umm…how do you know my sister?" Yuuki asked. The Nekomi student blinked a few times.

"Sister? Wait…Your Yumi-san's brother?" Ryou wondered.

_Well duh! That's the most logical answer. Unless Yumi-san is somehow involved in a secret government experiment for cloning…No, that's too retarded…_Ryou thought, shaking his head.

"Umm…excuse me." Yuuki snapped Ryou out of his silly thoughts.

"Oh! Yeah…sorry about the mix-up man." Ryou apologized to Yuuki.

"No problem. Do you know Yumi?" Yuuki asked him again.

"Yeah, Yumi-san and I met a while back. I escorted her home when she lost her umbrella." Ryou explained. Yuuki went wide eyed.

"So you were the one she was talking about." Yuuki mused. Ryou nodded.

"Thanks for helping her back then. I don't want to think what might have happened to her if she had walked all the way home by herself in that state." Yuuki said in a sad voice.

"Don't worry about it. I just did what anyone with a heart would do." Ryou said with a smile.

"Yeah…thanks anyway. So, where are you headed?" Yuuki asked.

"Part-time job. Gotta make ends meet this month lest I want to starve." Ryou said with a bit of humor.

"You live by yourself?" Yuuki asked.

"Yup…That's right, I never told Yumi-san anything about me…" Ryou mused. He looked at Yuuki.

"And I think that you have a few questions for me yourself huh?" Ryou speculated. He was proven right when Yuuki nodded to his question.

"I wouldn't mind learning more about a new friend of my sister's." Yuuki said.

"Walk with me then. I'll answer what I can on the way to the flower shop." Ryou proposed.

"Flower shop?" Yuuki wondered.

"My current part-time job..." Ryou explained.

"But Yumi said that you work at a convenience store." Yuuki countered.

"Oh that…well, I'll explain to you on the way then." Ryou said before he started walking, Yuuki followed him for a while.

...

Ryou explained how he got to Tokyo, how he got into a University, why he works at part-time jobs, even about the Motor Club and his Aunt Kaori.

"The Head of Lilian Academy is your Aunt?!" Yuuki asked, completely dumbstruck.

"Yeah…pretty funky huh? But that's how it is and thanks to that, I know my way around the campus." Ryou said.

"But I've never heard anything about anyone seeing you in the Lilian grounds before." Yuuki stated. Ryou stopped walking, smiled and formed his thumb and index finger like a pistol at Yuuki.

"Discretion is the better part of valor. I only go around Lilian while there are still classes going on so there are almost no people around the halls and grounds. For places that there are people around, I use stealth." Ryou explained.

"But wouldn't that be like you're sneaking around? Wouldn't it be easier to just go there casually?" Yuuki asked.

"And be bothered to explain what the hell I'm doing walking around an All-girls Catholic School in the middle of the day? No thanks! I go in, I do what I have to do there, and I get out. No worries." Ryou countered. Yuuki could understand Ryou's feelings. Being caught walking around Lilian by yourself like that would feel pretty weird.

"Well, here we are." Ryou pointed out. Yuuki looked around and saw that Ryou did indeed head for a flower shop. It was a pretty quaint store in front of the station so it's convenient for Ryou. Several sets of flowers were displayed outside.

"So this is where you work now huh?" Yuuki viewed the shop before looking at Ryou.

"Yep, before I go in…I never got your name." Ryou said. Yuuki flinched.

"That's right! Sorry about that. I'm Fukuzawa Yuuki." The younger Fukuzawa formally introduced himself.

"Miyamoto Ryou." Ryou said while extending his hand out. They then shook hands.

"It's nice to meet you Miyamoto-sempai." Yuuki said.

"Yeah, you too Yuuki-san." Ryou said. They said goodbye to each other before going their separate ways.

...

It was the evening before Yumi was to go with Sachiko to the Ogasawara Summer house. Yumi was busy packing when someone knocked on her door.

"It's open!" Yumi said. She heard the door open to reveal her younger brother.

"What's wrong Yuuki?" Yumi asked her brother while jamming in more clothes into her somewhat small travel bag.

"I met a friend of yours today." Yuuki said as he sat down on the chair near Yumi's desk.

"Friend?" Yumi was puzzled at Yuuki vagueness.

"Miyamoto Ryou-sempai…" Yuuki said matter-of-factly. Yumi stopped for a moment and looked at her brother.

"You met Ryou-san?" Yumi waited for confirmation.

"Yeah…this afternoon." Yuuki replied.

"Where did you meet him?" Yumi poked around some more.

"In front of a convenience store a few blocks from the station. He was heading for his part-time job. He actually mistook me for you." Yuuki said; a bit embarrassed about the last part though. Yumi giggled at the thought of Ryou's reaction from mistaking her brother for her.

"Hey!" Yuuki protested at her sister's amusement.

"Sorry…but it's just a bit funny!" Yumi admitted. Yuuki pouted (Yes…even his POUT resembles Yumi's the poor mook.) After Yumi recovered from making fun of her little brother for being so much like her, Yumi went back to poking around for some information about Ryou.

"So, what happened after he figured out that you weren't me?" Yumi asked. Yuuki simply sighed and decided to tell her. He WAS the one who told her that he met Ryou after all.

"Well, after the mix-up, I walked with him to where he works now and asked him about himself." Yuuki continued his story. Yumi listened intently to her brother's words.

"Well, for one thing, did you know that he's the same age as us but he's already a second year university student?" Yuuki asked her sister.

"So he's only seventeen? That's amazing!" Yumi exclaimed, her face once again showing her emotions.

"Yeah. I also learned that he lives on his own, which is why he has to have part-time jobs." Yuuki continued.

"That's why he was working at a convenience store before…" Yumi mused.

"Yup…" Yuuki concurred.

"Wait…where does he work now?" Yumi asked.

"He works at a flower shop near the station." Yuuki casually said.

"Flower…Shop…?" Yumi's face says: Shock. Yuuki nodded.

"Yeah…I was pretty surprised as well…" Yuuki said.

The Fukuzawa siblings continued their conversation for another half-hour. Yumi learned about Ryou being the nephew of the head of the academy. Yumi wondered if Ryou knew that his Aunt was the basis for one of the main characters of the novel 'Forest of Thorns' by Suga Sei who was mistaken for the former Rosa Gigantea: Satou Sei. Maybe he did. She also learned about the Motor Club, all the activities that Ryou participated in, the races, the builds, the cleaning up after his sempais.

_Wow…Ryou-san has a pretty active life…_Yumi slightly envied Ryou's outgoing nature and almost wished that her life was like that…almost…Yumi thought about her trip with her Onee-sama tomorrow.

_But…I'm still pretty contented with my life right now…_ Yumi smiled as she finalized her luggage for tomorrow.

...

"A what now?" Ryou was wondering what Sayoko was telling him. They were currently sitting on a bench in campus chit-chatting. Sayoko was wearing her trademark tan formal business suit and flat-heels while Ryou settled for a simple blue T-shirt, gray jeans and a worn pair of Reeboks.

"It's a birthday party for the great grandmother of the Saionji Clan, a rich family. Though honestly, I don't know why I was invited." Sayoko sighed at her statement.

"How so?" Ryou wondered, tilting his head.

"The family of that one I mentioned is still relatively new in the elite class. It's pretty obvious that they just invited me to show off that the heiress of the Mishima group is among their guests." Sayoko said in a bored tone.

"Using your name as something to increase their value in the elite society huh?" Ryou postulated.

"Exactly…" Sayoko said sarcastically.

"Sounds like you got it tough huh?" Ryou sympathized with his sempai's situation.

"Got that right…wanna come along? At least I'll have someone sensible to talk to." Sayoko asked. Ryou looked up seemingly considering her offer. After a few moments he looked back at Sayoko.

"I hate wearing monkey-suits…Besides, I'll just end up embarrassing you or something. Not exactly bred to impress…" Ryou said while pointing to himself. Sayoko giggled.

"True…but it would be nice to have someone I'm actually friends with along with me. Going there on my own is like a death sentence to have dozens of men who just want my money after me." Sayoko mused.

"What about someone else from the Motor Club?" Ryou asked. Sayoko gave him a disgusted look. Ryou re-analyzed his question.

"Right, I take that back…" Ryou understood Sayoko's worry.

"Well, it would be a really big favor for me…Please…" Sayoko pleaded. The Queen of Nekomi never pleads, she commands…but that's just how the public saw her. Ryou has learned that even Sayoko has a heart like everyone else.

"If nothing amazing happens before that then…I guess…but NO TUX!" Ryou demanded. Sayoko smiled.

"Turtleneck and Suit with Slacks…" Sayoko bargained.

"Done…" Ryou accepted.

"Come with me after classes then." Sayoko said. Ryou tilted his head.

"Why?" He asked. Sayoko stood up.

"So you can be measured for you new Italian Turtleneck Sweater and Armani Suit and Slacks." Sayoko said casually. Ryou jaw dropped.

"Excuse me?" He did a double take at Sayoko's words. Sayoko gave him a smile. Not the smile of a friend but the smile of an aristocrat, not the smile of Mishima Sayoko but the smile of The Queen of Nekomi Institute of Technology.

"You will be escorting the heiress of the Mishima Group. You may not have been bred to impress but I'll make sure that you're dressed to kill. I'll see you after school at the Motor Club. Farewell Miyamoto-kun." Sayoko said in a superior tone before walking away. Ryou just sat there, letting Sayoko's words sink in.

"What the hell did I get myself into?" He asked himself. The only response he got was the wind blowing.

...

Yumi was wondering on what action to take next. The past few days of her supposed relaxing vacation with her Onee-sama had turned into a struggle for her and Sachiko's pride as Soeurs. The latest struggle that they had to face was an invitation to a party by the Saionji Clan. They never said what the party was for but it was obviously just a trap to further embarrass Yumi. Thankfully, the rest of the Yamayurikai had visited them earlier and she and Sachiko had finally made the resolution to go to said party. Even if the result is not desirable, they will face it head-on together. Yumi wouldn't want it any other way.

"Tonight…Onee-sama and I will go to that party by the Saionji Clan." Yumi said to herself as she sat on her bed while looking out the window. Until now, she didn't really understand why she was hated by those girls just because she was Sachiko's Soeur.

_Onee-sama's Soeur…I never really thought about what that really meant. All I thought was that I could be with Onee-sama all the time and be the one she turns to when she needs helpt. But…some I guess some people don't see it that way…_Yumi contemplated, which is amazing considering that this was Yumi. Before she could philosophize any further, there was a knok at the door.

"Yes? Come in…" Yumi said. Sachiko entered the room holding a large box.

"Onee-sama?" Yumi was puzzled at what Sachiko was carrying with her. The Queen of Lilian sat at the other end of the bed from where Yumi is and placed the box between them.

"What is this?" Yumi asked, pointing to the box. Sachiko smiled.

"Your armor…" Sachiko said. Yumi tilted her head. Sachiko opened the box and revealed a simple but cute white dress.

"This is…" Yumi didn't have the words to finish her sentence. Sachiko caressed the fabric.

"My grandmother gave this to me on my sixteenth birthday. It remains as one of my most beloved possessions." Sachiko mused while thinking of her late grandmother. Yumi's eyes went wide at her Onee-sama's words. Sachiko looked at Yumi straight in the eye.

"I want you to wear it tonight." She said.

"But…this is your dress…I can't--" Yumi was cut-off.

"Yes…you can…and you will." Sachiko said in a calm tone.

"But why?" Yumi asked. She was absolutely godsmacked when Sachiko told her that she could use her prized dress that was given by her grandmother.

"Because I want you to know that I'll be here for you. Even if you become isolated at that party, a part of me will still be with you." Sachiko said. Yumi's eyes started to tear up.

"Onee-sama…" Yumi felt a lot of emotions at that moment. She never even noticed her tears until Sachiko left the room.

_Be strong Yumi…I won't let them harm you that easily._ Sachiko steeled herself.

...

Ryou looked around the room. He felt uncomfortable being around so many of the people he termed as "snobs". True to Sayoko's words, he was indeed wearing a black Italian-made Turtleneck Sweater with a matching Armani Suit and Slacks. Sayoko even bought him a pair of leather shoes. The brand was too hard to pronounce so he just assumed that it was just as expensive as the rest of the things he was wearing. He looked at the time. Yes, Sayoko even bought him a new Rolex watch. All of which, Sayoko said he could keep as compensation for accompanying her. His hair was gelled but he maintained his hairstyle, if a bit neater. The Queen of Nekomi anticipated correctly when she said that a bunch of men who just want in the Mishima group would go after her. When she was announced to have arrived, several men in the party, even some with dates, positioned themselves to look at Sayoko. When Ryou's name was announced, all the men then began to disperse with pained faces.

"I could probably buy a house with all the stuff stuck on me…" Ryou was exaggerating of course, but the stuff stuck on him WERE obscenely expensive. He then noticed Sayoko approaching him.

"How are you holding up?" Sayoko asked her friend. She was her usual stunning self as she sported a red gown made by someone whose name even I can't pronounce properly. Ryou wondered if what Sayoko was wearing was more expensive than what he had. He was probably right.

"I've seen ICUs more active than this. Your new year's party was a lot more fun." Ryou was talking about the party the Sayoko threw in another bid to embarrass Belldandy. Naturally, Belldandy won out in the end, but it was still a pretty fun ride…for Ryou anyway.

"Please don't remind me about that…and what are you doing leaving your date alone like that. You're supposed to be my escort right? So escort me." Sayoko said while wrapping her arm around Ryou's. The young man went a shade or red when he felt Sayoko's breast squeeze up into his arm. He turned to her.

"I don't even know any of these people; much less what the hell they're talking about." Ryou protested. Sayoko smiled.

"Don't worry, I don't know any of them either. And that's our advantage. They don't know who you are so they'll believe anything that I tell them. All you have to do is look important." Sayoko said. Ryou could understand her logic but it really didn't settle with him any better than before. He didn't have a choice as Sayoko dragged him into the crowd and started introducing him to all the guests.

...

"Everyone! I announce the arrival of Ogasawara Sachiko-sama!" Saionji Yukari declared. Sayoko was introducing Ryou to one of the guests when he caught Sachiko's name.

"Ogasawara? Isn't that…" Ryou was cut-off by Yukari's voice.

"And with her is the most anticipated Fukuzawa Yumi-sama." Yukari said.

"Yumi-san?!" Ryou said.

"What is it?" Sayoko asked him. He removed Sayoko's arm from his.

"Sorry Mishima-sempai. I have to check out something." He said before walking away.

"Miyamoto-kun…" Was all Sayoko could say before she went off to follow him.

...

Yumi could overhear people talking about her, whether or not this was intentional was unknown. But they were all negative. Yumi then felt someone approach her.

"Might you be a masochist Yumi-sama?" Touko asked (been a while huh?).

"Touko-chan…" Yumi regarded the drill-haired girl.

"I won't be responsible to what happens to you…" Touko said before walking away. Before Yumi could say anything, she felt a presence beside her.

"You soeurs sure have guts." It was Kashiwagi Suguru.

"Kashiwagi-san." Yumi confirmed what the narrator said.

"You came here despite the fact that you knew that you would be treated badly. I'm not sure what you two are thinking." He said in a slightly more serious tone.

"But why do I have to be treated badly." Yumi wondered.

...

"Yumi-san!" Ryou called out when he got close enough. He saw Yumi with Sachiko and another man he recognized from the party. Yumi turned to the source of the voice.

"Ryou-san? What are you doing here?" Yumi asked with an obvious amount of surprise. Sachiko was equally surprised at Ryou's attendance. Suguru remained silent and took a sip of his drink.

"Right back at you! I came here with a sempai of mine. She asked me to escort her to this party. What's your story?" Ryou said. Yumi's head lowered.

"It's a long story…" Yumi said. She then noticed someone walk up behind Ryou.

"Well now, what is all this?" Sayoko asked.

"Mishima-sempai…" Ryou regarded his sempai.

"It's not very gentlemanly of you to leave your date to go after other women you know." Sayoko said flatly.

"It's not like that and you know it." Ryou countered. Sayoko smiled.

"Can't get anything past you huh?" Sayoko said. She then looked at Yumi and Sachiko.

"Greetings, I'm Mishima Sayoko. A pleasure…" Sayoko greeted the roses.

"I'm Ogasawara Sachiko and this is Fukuzawa Yumi. It's a pleasure Mishima-san." Sachiko introduced both of them. Their attention was suddenly taken by a sudden applause from the crowd. They all looked at the source and saw an old lady on a wheelchair. The old lady didn't seem to be having fun.

"Is that her?" Ryou asked Sayoko.

"Yes…" Was all she said. Yumi tugged Ryou's sleeve.

"Who is that?" Yumi asked. Yukari answered her question.

"Please greet our beloved great grandmother a happy birthday!" She said.

"Brithday?" Yumi questioned.

"Yeah…that's why Mishima-sempai is here. She was invited by the Saionji's to the birthday party of the great grandmother of the clan. I was dragged along to fight off the wolves." Ryou said while looking at the old lady.

"Wolves?" Yumi wondered. Ryou looked at her and smiled.

"It's a long story." He said. Yumi then looked at Sachiko who had a worried look.

_We were the only ones who weren't informed of the purpose of the party…_Yumi thought.

...

The young women in the party then started playing various instruments to show off their talents to the people and to the old lady. She didn't seem to care. Ryou wondered what was wrong with her. Yumi asked the same thing and Suguru explained that it was because her children rebuilt the house they were standing in without her consent. This pissed her off and she closed her heart to the family.

"By the way…can you play an instrument?" Suguru asked.

"A little piano when I was younger…but I can't play it anymore." Yumi flinched at her words and looked at Sachiko. Her Onee-sama had a distressed expression.

"What are you guys talking about?" Ryou asked. Before he could get an answer, Yukari approached their group. Ryou saw her and immediately noticed her fake smile. Sayoko chose to remain silent for now.

"Would you like to perform a piece for us Yumi-sama? We have all the usual instruments here." Yukari said. Sachiko and Yumi's fears were proven right at her words.

_So that's how it is…_Ryou though. He looked at Sayoko who just closed her eyes.

_You've got to be kidding me?! Why the hell are they setting Yumi-san up?!_ He wondered while giving Yukari a glare. She never noticed as she was focused on what Yumi's response will be. Yumi then started to step forward. Sahciko grabbed her wrist.

"Yumi…that's enough…you don't need to--" Sachiko said. She then felt Yumi's hand.

"It's okay…I'll be fine." Yumi said as she removed Sachiko's hand.

_Yumi-san… _Ryou was worried about Yumi as well. The problem was that he couldn't do anything he would normally do to defend his friends (read: Beat the opposition to an inch of their life) because he came in as Sayoko's date. If he would do anything drastic, he would collectively embarrass Yumi, Sachiko, AND Sayoko. This kind of helplessness made him cringe.

"This is why I hate aristocrats…no offence…" He said turning to Sayoko.

"None taken…Its people like them that give the rest of us a bad name." Sayoko said. They then heard Yumi start to sing.

"That girl…" Sayoko was amazed at Yumi resilience. Even though the entire room was hostile towards her, she still didn't give up. That alone deserved Sayoko's respect.

_Maria-sama no kokoro…_Ryou though. He had heard his Aunt sing that a few times when he was a kid. Ryou's eyes suddenly lit up with an idea. He gave Sahciko a gentle nudge. Sachiko then looked at Ryou.

"Can you play that on the piano?" Ryou asked.

"Yes…why?" Sachiko's eyes then lit up to what Ryou was suggesting. She looked at Yumi and then back at Ryou.

"Give her a hand." He said. Sachiko smiled and made her way to the piano in the room.

"Well, that was quick thinking. Well done." Sayoko complimented Ryou.

"Just doing what I can with what I got." Ryou said.

...

The party ended in a good tone for Yumi and Sachiko. The old lady loved Yumi's song and even regarded her as an "angel". Yumi was relieved that everything wrapped up well, Sachiko felt the same way.

"Well, at least it wasn't as boring as I had thought." Ryou said. He Sayoko, Sachiko, and Yumi were talking amongst themselves.

"That was a wonderful song you sang Fukuzawa-san. What is it called again?" Sayoko asked Yumi.

"Maria-sama no kokoro." Yumi said proudly.

"Thank you Miyamoto-san." Sachiko said.

"For what?" Ryou asked.

"For giving me the idea of playing the piano a while ago." Sachiko said.

"Oh that…don't worry about it. What's important is that it all worked out." Ryou said.

"That's right…it's nice to see those people get taken down a peg." Sayoko said proudly.

"But didn't you used to be one of 'those' people?" Ryou reminded.

"Key word…Used to…Never forget that." Sayoko countered.

"Yes ma'am…" Ryou acknowledged.

"Ummm…Ryou-san?" Yumi called out to Ryou.

"Yeah?" He regarded Yumi.

"Where did you get all of that…they look really expensive." Yumi pointed to Ryou's clothes.

"Oh that…" Ryou felt a sweat drop as he once again became conscious of what he was wearing.

"Ryou-san?" Yumi wondered at Ryou's reaction. Sayoko just giggled and Sachiko just smiled, relieved that they got through this well.

...

That's all for now. Please R&R!


	4. Chapter 4

Author's note: Thanks for everyone who's been reading this. I honestly thought that this was going to be completely ignored since I went waaaaaaay against the current by pairing up Yumi with a guy. I hope that more people will give this a chance and I'll do my best to keep things fun and interesting as Attraction & Repulsion was. Thanks everyone!

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything on this fic that can be used against me in a court of law!**

...

"You seem rather relieved…" says the Head of Lilian Academy. It was afternoon and she and her nephew, Ryou, were having tea in her office.

"That may be because exams are finally over. We get three weeks off from school starting today." Ryou said before taking another sip of tea. The week long exam in Nekomi or "Hell Week on Ice!" as the students refer to it was over and everyone was preparing for their summer vacation. Ryou went to Kaori after the exams to unwind and the fact that if he stuck around the University, Tamiya and Ohtaki would just make him do a general cleaning of the club house.

"That's nice. How did you do?" Kaori asked.

"I did my best, that's all I can say right now. But I don't think I'll fail anything." Ryou said confidently.

"I wouldn't expect anything less." Kaori said.

The two of them talked for a while longer until Ryou had to leave because it was starting to get dark. They said their goodbyes and Ryou left her aunt's office. He was walking normally in the grounds of Lilian because it was already late and he figured that there weren't anymore students around at this time. He was wrong.

"Excuse me but what business do you have here?" Ryou froze at the voice. Because of the exams he was still pretty drained mentally and physically and so his senses were not at full efficiency. He mentally kicked himself a few times before turning to see it was that called him. The woman was in street clothes, a white shirt and jeans. She had dark blonde hair that was cut so short you'd think that she was a man. Someone else was with her as well. It was another woman; this one had long black hair and wore glasses. She was also wearing a blue T-shirt and jeans.

_Are they from the Women's University part of Lilian?_ Ryou knew about Lilian being divided into different levels of education. It would make sense to assume that these two in front of him were from the nearby Lilian University since no teacher would change this fast inside the campus. The two women never took their eyes off of him.

"Oh…well...I umm…" Ryou considered running right there. But that would complicate things even further since he still has to return here ever so often to visit his aunt.

"Are you looking for someone? Because it sure doesn't seem like you are a student here." The woman with glasses asked. The other woman started laughing at her statement.

"Good one Kei! It would be pretty weird if Lilian had mysteriously added ONE male student in the school. But that would be a pretty interesting scenario…" The masculine-looking woman said while rubbing her chin with her hand.

"That's not even funny Sei." The woman called Kei replied in a sarcastic tone. Ryou felt like he was watching a comedy duo. He started to back away very slowly, hoping that the two women were too caught up in their own world to notice him. Once again, he thought wrong.

"Hey! Are you trying to sneak away?" The woman called Sei caught Ryou. The young man flinched.

"You haven't answered our previous question." Kei said. Ryou sighed.

"Fine…you got me. I was here to deliver something to someone in this school. I was on my way out when you two caught me." Ryou kept the part about his aunt out of his explanation.

"A delivery? Kinda late in the day for something like that isn't it?" Kei countered. Sei put her arm around Kei's shoulder.

"Awww! C'mon Kei! He doesn't seem like a bad guy. Besides, what else could he be doing here? It's not like there's a secret government experiment about cloning happening here right?" Sei said. Kei turned to her friend.

"Cloning?" Kei was used to the stupid things that come out of Sei's mouth every now and then but this was the dumbest one this week.

_I feel like I've heard that somewhere before…_Ryou wondered at the strange sense of déjà vu. Sei turned to Ryou.

"You didn't do anything bad in there did you?" Sei asked.

"Of course not…That would be stupid…" Ryou answered sarcastically.

"See…" Sei said to Kei.

"Fine…If he was doing anything bad then I guess that he could have just run away from us in the first place." Kei deducted.

_Why didn't you come up with that sooner?_ Ryou protested in his mind.

"Can I go now…?" Ryou asked. The two women looked at him.

"Oh sure! Sorry about that!" Sei said in a cheerful tone while scratching the back of her head.

"Yes, I apologize for my actions." Kei said.

"No worries. Well then, I'll get going now." Ryou said before walking away.

"Well, that was different…" Ryou said to himself. He looked back to where the two women were. He overheard them talking about a going to a trip in a few weeks. Ryou thought he heard the word "Italy" but he couldn't be sure, he simply shrugged and kept walking.

...

"What am I supposed to do?" Yumi was very worried and disturbed at the moment. She had learned earlier that Kanako (been a while huh?) had been following her around the campus ever since the second semester started. At first it was fine since she thought that Kanako was just the helpful type. The whole thing hit the fan when Tsutako showed her pictures of her with Kanako sneaking around the background. What was worse was that Kanako had even gone as far as following around the men that even go near Yumi, the 'why' of this action still eludes The Rosa Chinensis En Bouton. Yumi had never thought that she would even have a stalker, much less one that was a full head taller that she was. As Yumi was racking her brain on what to do, her brother knocked at the door.

"Open up, I know you're still awake." Yuuki said from the other side of the door. Yumi got up from her bed and opened the door.

"How did you know?" Yumi asked her brother.

"Because I wouldn't be able to sleep after finding out that I have a stalker either…" Yuuki answered. Yumi smiled.

"Thanks…" Was all she said. They both sat down, Yumi was on her bed while Yuuki sat on the floor.

"So, what will be your plan?" Yuuki asked her sister.

"I don't know…Kanako-chan is a nice girl, but she's just…" Yumi couldn't find the heart to finish her sentence. Yuuki chose to do it for her.

"She went to far…" Yuuki said. His sister nodded.

"I don't know what to do about this right now so I'll just concentrate with the Hanadera School Festival tomorrow." Yumi reasoned.

"Are you sure? You don't have to force yourself you know. If you're worried about Sachiko-san then I'll make sure that nothing happens to her." Yuuki tried to talk Yumi out of doing her part in the _Battle of Hanadera_. He was worried that it will just stress out Yumi even further. Yumi smiled at the caring sentiment of her brother.

"Don't worry, I'm a lot tougher than I look. I can take it, as long as I'm with Onee-sama, I can take it." Yumi said with confidence.

"Well…I guess…Hey Yumi…" Yuuki slightly hesitated with his words.

"What is it?" Yumi asked.

"This girl…Kanako-san…she hates men right?" Yuuki asked her sister.

"Yes…But I don't know why though. But it seems to be pretty serious." Yumi replied.

"Isn't Sachiko-san the same. She hates men too right? I thought that she would be on Kanako-san's side then." Yuuki postulated.

"At first, I thought the same thing. But Onee-sama doesn't hate all men like Kanako-chan does. I mean, she doesn't hate you right?" Yumi countered.

"That's only because I'm your brother AND I look like you." Yuuki said in a slightly defeated tone.

"I don't think so…Onee-sama isn't someone who judges people by their appearance alone. So I think that there might be more to it that just 'because I look like my sister'…" Yumi reasoned.

"I guess…" Yuuki could see the logic in Yumi's words.

"What's with all this anyway?" Yumi asked Yuuki.

"Umm…no reason. Are you sure you're okay now?" Yuuki asked one more time.

"Yeah, thanks for worrying about me." Yumi said.

"No problem. That's what I'm here for." Yuuki said before leaving Yumi's room.

_Kanako-chan…_Yumi thought.

_Sachiko-san…_Yuuki thought.

...

The repeating buzzing noise of Ryou's alarm clock echoed throughout his apartment. The rays of the sun penetrated the closed curtains of his room. Ryou slammed his hand on to of the alarm clock and looked at the time.

_8:00am!? Blast! I forgot to disable the alarm last night…_ Ryou thought. His alarm clock was still set on the time he wakes up for the exams, he forgot to disable it because it simply slipped his mind (don't act like that doesn't happen to you sometimes!) Ryou tried to go back to sleep but to no avail. He was the type of person who STAYS awake after being woken up, regardless of time. He grumbled under his blanket and sat up.

"The hell should I do now?" Ryou asked his room apparently. He got out of his bed, not bothering to fix it up because he was in a bad mood. He went into the small living room of his apartment and turned on the television, there was a comedy duo on. Ryou suddenly remembered Sei and Kei.

_I wonder if those two will tell anyone about me…I sure hope not. That would suck…_Ryou thought before walking to his kitchen to make some breakfast. He opened the fridge to find that it was almost bare.

"Crap…I have to restock…" Ryou said to himself while looking for something to cook.

"Nothing…I guess I'll eat out for today…" Ryou said before closing the door of his fridge. He went back into his room to get dressed and get some money.

...

The Yamayurikai was preparing to head for Hanadera. They had a meeting in the morning in the Rose Mansion to wrap up some work and to make sure that everyone knew what they were getting into. The whole meeting was mainly for Sachiko since she was still pretty touch and go about the whole thing. After Sachiko repeatedly said that she will alright, they all made their way to the main gate of Lilian.

"Yumi-san, isn't that your friend?" Shimako pointed to Ryou who was passing in front of the main entrance. The young man had a bored expression. Yumi once again had her trademark 'ZOMG!' face on.

"Ryou-san!" Yumi exclaimed, a bit louder than she had thought since everyone stopped walking and stared at her. Yumi looked around and saw everyone looking at her.

"Yumi. It's very rude to suddenly yell like that." Sachiko reprimanded her soeur.

"Sorry Onee-sama…" Yumi apologized.

"Yumi-san?" The Yamayurikai turned to the source of the voice.

"Geokigenyo Ryou-san…" Yumi said in a soft tone. Ryou wondered at Yumi's sudden submissive demeanor.

_So that's him huh? Tsutako-san and Mami-san said that he seemed like an okay guy but I have to see it to believe it first!_ Yoshino thought to herself after seeing Ryou for the first time.

_I wonder who this is? _Rei wondered. He looked at Sachiko, the Queen of Lilian did not seem distressed with Ryou's presence.

_Well, if Sachiko's alarm isn't going off then I guess that guy is safe…_ Rei reasoned.

"Goki…What's up? It's Sunday right? So, why are you all here?" Ryou asked the Yamayurikai in a casual manner thought to be impossible for any young man who encountered the supposed legendary beauties of the Lilian Roses.

"We're headed for Hanadera." Yumi said, returning to her usual self.

"Hanadera?" Ryou wondered what business the girls had in their neighboring school.

"It's their School Festival today and they requested us to be special participants in it." Sachiko answered Ryou's question.

"Oh…I see." Ryou said.

"Where are you heading Ryou-san?" Yumi asked.

"Nowhere in particular…I forgot to change the alarm in my clock and I woke up a lot earlier than I had planned but at least I got some shopping done…If all else fails, I can always just lurk around Akihabara for a while…" Ryou mused.

"Why don't you accompany us then?" Yumi proposed. Ryou and the Yumi's fellow roses stared at her.

"Yumi-san…are you sure that's even allowed?" Yoshino interjected. Yumi nodded.

"Yuuki already knows Ryou-san so I don't think he will object to it. How about it Ryou-san?" Yumi asked again.

"What does Yuuki-san have to do with this?" Ryou asked Yumi.

"Oh…That's because he's the Hanadera Student Council President." Yumi said casually.

"He is? Wow…I never would have expected that…" Ryou said in genuine surprise.

"I know! Even I was shocked when I found out!" Yumi exclaimed.

"Ummm…Shouldn't we get going?" Shimako reminded.

"Oh! You're right!" Rei said.

"Well then, we need to get going now Miyamoto-san." Sachiko said in a slightly defensive tone.

"Are you sure you don't want to come along?" Yumi asked one more time. Ryou felt a strong sense of pressure around him at Yumi's voice. The young man sighed.

"Fine…I'll tag along. Not like I have anything else to do today anyway…" Ryou said in a defeated tone.

"That's great!" Yumi said in a cheery voice. The rest of the Yamayurikai did not seem to object though Yoshino had a bit of an irritated expression.

_Why don't you just cling onto him like a sentient alien parasite then…Jeez…_ Yoshino thought…wait, I think I've heard that line somewhere before…anyway, the Yamayurikai plus one finally made their way to the nearby school and _The Battle of Hanadera_.

...

"Ryou-sempai?! What are you doing here…" Yuuki said while doing a 'Yumi', Alice was with him as well. The young Hanadera Student Council President was surprised at the sight of Ryou accompanying the Yamayurikai.

"Blame my alarm clock…" Ryou mused. Yuuki had a very confused look.

"What?" Yuuki voiced his confusion.

"Nevermind…" Ryou chose to drop the subject since if it wasn't for his alarm clock, he would still be asleep right now.

"It's alright if Ryou-san came in with us right?" Yumi asked her younger brother.

"I guess…I don't have any objections about it." Yuuki answered.

"It'll just be like he's the Yamayurikai's personal bodyguard!" Alice suggested. Everyone stared at Alice because of what he said.

"Let's just get going…" Ryou said a bored tone.

"That's probably a good idea. Follow me then." Yuuki said. They all made their way through the grounds of Hanadera. They saw a lot of pretty amazing stuff while they were walking.

"What…is all this?" Yoshino asked as if she just arrived in a strange foreign land.

"Ninjas and Tarzan…" Noriko replied casually, seemingly not uncomfortable with the whole thing. Shimako on the other hand…

"I know that but…" Shimako said in a nervous voice while covering her line of sight to the dude in the loin cloth. That girl must be as pure and innocent as people think…

_Cool! I wonder where they got those Kamen Rider outfits? I see V3, Black RX, and Stronger…I want one!_ Ryou thought after seeing a bunch of Hanadera students cosplaying as various Kamen Riders, the Nekomi student geeked out at the sight of the costumes of his heroes. He was walking at the end of the group so none of the girls noticed him staring at the cosplayers. Said cosplayers saw Ryou looking at them and they immediately posed in the way each Rider would when they transform. Ryou gave them a big grin and a double thumb's up for that. The Riders returned the gesture.

"Everyone is so lively aren't they…?" Sachiko said in a forced voice. Yumi looked at her Onee-sama. Sachiko looked like she was constipated or something.

"Hang in there Onee-sama…" Yumi said, trying to cheer Sachiko on. Yuuki looked back to Sachiko and saw her 'constipated' face.

_I hope she'll be okay…_Yuuki thought. He then remembered the precautions that he and the rest of the student council made for this event.

"Don't worry; we've made clear instructions to each and everyone here not to do anything inappropriate to you ladies." Yuuki reassured Sachiko and Yumi.

"What kind of instructions?" Ryou asked from the back of the group.

"If anyone does anything to offend any of the Roses then their entire club will be dissolved." Yuuki said in a serious tone.

"Dissolved? Like disbanded?" Yumi asked for clarification. Alice answered that question.

"Not just disbanding. Their club will be stricken from the school records. It'll be like that club never existed." Alice said. Ryou was taken aback at the severity of the punishment.

"Ouch…" Ryou voiced his reaction.

"Yeah…Hanadera Clubs emphasize legacy, so no one wants to cause their club to be dissolved." Alice explained.

_That would be a slap in the face for all the former members of that club. That would most indeed suck._ Ryou thought while having a pained expression. Rei noticed Ryou's expression.

"What's wrong? Not feeling well?" Rei asked the young man. Ryou waved off Rei's worry.

"Nah…I was just imagining what it would feel like if you single-handedly caused the end of your club." Ryou said. Rei nodded at his words.

"True, I sure don't want the kendo club to end that way." Rei agreed with Ryou's concern.

"Kendo? You practice kendo?" Ryou was surprised at Rei's words.

"Yeah. Is there something wrong with that?" Rei asked.

"No way! I think that's awesome! Do you compete in tournaments and stuff?" Ryou complimented Rei.

"Well…yes. I usually lead the Lilian team in competitions." Rei explained, a slight blush crept on her cheeks. This was the first time that anyone outside of Lilian told her that it was great that she practices kendo. She had always thought that it would be a turn-off since it made her look less feminine which is the complete opposite of who she really was.

"Nice! Good luck in future competitions then. I hope I can see you do your stuff sometime." Ryou said with a big smile.

"Ummm…th--thank you…" Rei said in a slightly embarrassed tone, her blush becoming more apparent. Yoshino noticed this and gave Ryou a sharp look though the young man didn't notice it.

_Who does that guy think he is being all casual with Rei-chan?! And why are you blushing you idiot!_ Yoshino thought while glaring at Rei. Her cousin noticed this and wondered what she did to Yoshino this time.

"What?" Rei voiced her bewilderment. Yoshino turned away from her.

"Rei-chan no baka…" Yoshino whispered. Rei felt a sweat drop at her cousin's response. The whole group then stopped when they saw a person in a panda suit giving out lollipops to some kids.

"Koala?" Ryou said out loud. Yoshino glared at him.

"Panda!" Yoshino corrected Ryou with extreme prejudice. Ryou took a step back at Yoshino's response.

"R—right…sorry about that…" Ryou said in a defensive tone.

"Hmph!" Yoshino quickly turned away from him. The man in the Koa—Panda suit approached the group and gave a lollipop to Yumi. After giving said candy to the Rosa Chinensis En Bouton, the panda-man walked away.

"Why only me?" Yumi wondered while Yuuki snickered.

"Maybe because it thought that you were the most childlike in the group." Yuuki said in a sarcastic tone.

"I am not a child!" Yumi protested.

"Yumi, that is no way for a lady to act. If you don't want that sweet then just say so. Here, give it to me." Sachiko said in an Onee-sama-like tone. Yumi then hid said sweet behind her while shaking her head.

"No, it was given to me." Yumi said.

"Just make sure you don't eat it while walking." Sachiko said before walking on.

"Just how old are you?" Ryou asked Yumi in a sarcastic tone. Yumi smiled and stuck her tongue out at Ryou.

"That's none of your business!" She told off Ryou. The young man smiled at walked on. Yumi took this time to look at her lollipop. She noticed something printed on the wrapper.

"Detective novel appreciation club?" Yumi wondered at the label on the wrapper.

"Yumi! Hurry up!" Sachiko called out to her soeur. Yumi looked in the direction where the voice came from. She saw everyone waiting for her.

"Coming!" Yumi said while walking to catch up to them.

...

"Well, this is different…" Ryou mused after seeing the towers the students of Hanadera made for the competition. There were three in all, each were colored in tandem for which Rose was going to use them. He was supposed to help out the En Boutons on the ground while a representative from the Hanadera Student Council stayed with the Roses on the tower.

"Tall, isn't it?" Noriko commented. Ryou nodded at her words.

"Gotta be two stories at least." Ryou judged the height of the towers. They then heard the sound of a megaphone being turned on. Yuuki was standing on the Red tower along with Sachiko and Yumi.

"As the Student Council president of Hanadera. I declare this leg of the Battle of Hanadera, the Lilian Campaign, officially OPEN!" Yuuki declared over the megaphone. The second that he finished, hundreds of Hanadera students charged the three towers. Sachiko looked like she was going to have a heart attack; it was like her worst nightmare come true. Yumi noticed the severely scared expression that Sachiko had; she knelt down beside Sachiko and held her hand.

"Don't worry Onee-sama…I'm right here with you." Yumi said, trying to calm down the queen. Sahciko looked at Yumi and smiled.

"Yes, you're right…" Sachiko said, her heart rate becoming more normal.

"Whoa! This is something else…" Ryou was in awe at the utter chaos unfolding before him. There were different challenges to get up each tower. The red tower had a slope with a single rope tied at the top; it was straightforward since all you had to do was use the rope to get to the top. The problem was that everyone else was pulling the one trying to get up the rope. The yellow tower had some sort of yellow slime covering the slope leading up to the top. Again, straightforward…messy but straightforward nonetheless. The white tower has something a bit different. It doesn't have a rope or slime, instead, the students have to find a small white ball underneath a tray filled with white powder (presumably flour) the trick is that they may only use their mouth to find said white ball. Only after finding one will they be allowed to go up the tower.

...

Each tower has been assaulted for a while now and the heat is starting to get to everyone. Yumi went back to the main building to get Sachiko's wet towel since the queen needs to have a constant temperature, overheating may result in mass destruction of epic proportions. That being said, Yumi wasted no time in going to get her wet towel. The thing is that it's been a while since she left the red tower and Sachiko is getting worried. Ryou had just finished fixing a pileup near the rope where someone nearly got squashed in a mass of adolescent males (crappy way to die if you're a guy) when he saw Yuuki coming down from the tower.

"What's wrong? Is the mass hysteria over?" Ryou asked, he then noticed Yuuki's serious face.

"Yumi hasn't come back yet. Sachiko-san wanted me to check it out." Yuuki said. Ryou gave him a flat stare.

"Maybe she just went to the bathroom or something, you know how long girls take in there. You'd think they take naps in there." Ryou reasoned. Yuuki could see Ryou's point but even he had a bad feeling about all this.

"In any case, I just want to make sure. Could you inform everyone where I'm going?" Yuuki requested.

"Sure, but I sure wished that you guys had Walkie-talkies or something…" Ryou replied.

"Yeah, I'll keep that in mind next time…" Yuuki said sheepishly before heading off to look for his sister. Yuuki looked at the towers and the mass of raging hormones that were trying to ascend them.

"Yeah…you guys should have had walkies handy…" Ryou said to himself. He suddenly thought that since the Fukuzawas were away…

_Who's guarding Ogasawara-san?_ Ryou thought while looking up the ladder of the red tower.

"Oh Shi-!" He exclaimed before climbing the tower to make sure that Sachiko was okay. When he got to the top, he was surprised to see three Hanadera students all kneeling down in front of Sachiko like she was a queen or something (It's more likely than you think!) Sachiko didn't seem to notice the display in front of her since she had a distant look. Ryou's mouth hung open at the sight.

_What the fork?!_ He thought as he stared at the strange situation.

_Yumi…_was all Sachiko was thinking at the moment.

...

Yumi was currently being held captive by the Detective Novel appreciation club on the grounds that they thought that she was Yuuki. Naturally, they nearly wet themselves when they realized that the person they abducted was in fact Yuuki's sister and Rosa Chinensis En Bouton. That last part was the thing that made them nearly wet themselves since the punishment for ANYONE who would offend any of the roses was to have their club dissolved; they didn't want to know the punishment for ABDUCTING a rose. Yumi was angry at them for abducting her but she really didn't want anything bad to happen to them either. They were at a stalemate until they heard the door open. They all looked at who came in and to Yumi's surprise; it was the panda that gave her the lollipop.

"Kashiwagi-senpai!" The president of the club said. Yumi's jaw dropped at the revalation. She turned to look at the panda that was currently taking off its head and revealed none other than Kashiwagi Suguru. The Ginko Prince smiled at Yumi but glared at the others.

"And what is this now? I thought that you guys were going to tag Yukichi?" Suguru said in a very serious tone. The club members all took a step back from him in fear, even Yumi was a bit uncomfortable at the moment. Suguru looked at Yumi again.

"Did they hurt you Yumi-chan?" Suguru asked. If he wasn't so gay he'd actually be a pretty damn charming guy. Yumi shook her head.

"Nothing serious. But I want to get out of here without being noticed. Onee-sama must be worried sick by now." Yumi explained.

"And Yukichi must be looking for you as well." Suguru added. He looked at the club members again.

"I will deal with all of you later…but for now, help me off this suit." Suguru said. The club members did what they were told to and soon Suguru was free of the furry armor. Thankfully he wasn't naked underneath that thing or that would be wrong on too many levels. Suguru then handed the head of the suit to Yumi.

"What is this for?" She asked. Suguru smiled.

"Your way back to Sa-chan…" Suguru said. Yumi caught on to Suguru's suggestion and soon she was wearing the panda suit, naturally it was too big for her so it was rather comical to see her in it.

_This is harder than I thought…_Yumi thought as she tried to walk around in the panda suit.

"You'd better hurry, the game is almost over." Suguru said as he led Yumi to the door. The young woman turned back to Suguru and did her best to bow.

"Thank you Kashiwagi-san." Yumi said. Suguru smiled at Yumi's kindness.

"Just get back to Sa-chan." Suguru said before heading back to where the club members were waiting for their punishment. Yumi opened the door and nearly knocked into her brother who was on a warpath to the Detectve Novel Appreciation Club (Jeez! That is a mouthful!) Yumi couldn't afford being caught like this by Yuuki so she passed by him and made her way back to Sachiko. Speaking off…

...

Ryou was back on the ground fixing another mass of bodies that got bunched up at the entrance; the twin towers of Hanadera were guarding Sachiko. Suddenly, he heard a conch blow. He turned to the source of the loud noise and saw that it came from the white tower.

"Okay, now that's just too much…" Ryou said while considering the ridiculousness of the whole thing. Everyone stopped in their tracks when they heard the conch, much to Ryou's relief. He was them surprised to see Sachiko coming down from the tower using the ladder; he even almost got a peek up the queen's skirt. If anyone found that out then he wouldn't be alive for much longer. He grabbed Sachiko's arm and looked at her, the queen had an anxious expression.

"What's wrong?" Ryou asked. Sachiko ripped her arm from Ryou's grasp.

"I don't have time for this! She's right there! I have to go!" Sachiko said in a frenzy before running off into the crowd.

"Hey! Wait!" Ryou called out but Sachiko ignored him. He soon gave chase to the queen.

...

Yumi was having a hard time as it is walking around in the panda suit, now she had to plow her way past a sea of Hanadera Students. She noticed that everyone stopped after hearing the conch so Yumi deducted that the game must already be over. She passed through the crowd with gusto in order to find Sahciko. She was surprised to see that a few steps in front of her was the one she was looking for.

_Onee-sama!_ Yumi yelled in her head as she made a break for Sachiko. The queen of Lilian had the same idea and the two of them met half-way.

_She proved it! She really did find me!_ Yumi was thinking about the thing that Sachiko told her about finding Yumi no matter what the obstacles were. Yumi was very happy to know that it was all true. Ryou finally made it to where the two red roses were and was treated to another unusual sight.

_Ogasawara-san is embracing a panda…wow…_At least he didn't say 'Koala' again. It was a pretty weird ending for a pretty weird day in Hanadera but no one seemed to care since it ended pretty well.

"So…what's with the getup a while ago?" Ryou asked Yumi. The Yamayurikai, Ryou and Yuuki were talking in front of the main gate of Hanadera.

"Oh that…well, that's for another time." Yumi squirmed out of the topic.

"It was pretty amazing how Sachiko found you though." Rei commented.

"Yeah, I thought she suddenly lost it when she came down from the tower using the ladder." Ryou said. Yumi looked at Sachiko in surprise.

"I thought you hated heights?" Yumi asked. Sachiko smiled at her.

"I really didn't notice after I saw you…" Sachiko said honestly.

"Onee-sama…" was all Yumi could say.

_What's with this atmosphere?_ Ryou thought.

...

Huzzah! Please R&R!


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Note: Huzzah! I'm back! Been a while since my last update due to work but I've finally managed to finish the new chapter. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything on this fic that can be used against me in a court of law.**

...

"And that's what happened…I feel so defeated…" Ryou said in a grim voice before taking another sip of tea (I think you already know where at this point.) Ryou was telling his aunt of how Belldandy's younger sister, Skuld, managed to get an engine block running that Ryou had been working on for nearly a week. Skuld even added insult to injury by explaining everything he did wrong, Ryou had never felt anything quite as embarrassing as that.

"I just can't believe that I got trumped by a girl who is barely into puberty…" Ryou said while sinking even further into the pit of despair. Kaori sat next to him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Now now…I can see why you feel depressed but you can't keep yourself down like that. You should know that better than anyone." Kaori told him. Ryou looked up at his Aunt, he still looked down.

"I know that but…You know how I hate being wrong. I've been working on that thing for a while now. I just didn't like the fact that someone else figured it out so easily. It…irritates me…" Ryou said with a pained expression. Kaori sighed at her nephew's dilemma.

_Sometimes, this boy can get so worked up over the smallest things. _Kaori thought to herself.

...

Ryou left Kaori's office and walked off to the main gate of Lilian still depressed. There are some things even he can't get over so easily. He had been walking for a while when he noticed that he had stopped in front of the Virgin Mary statue. Ryou looked up at the statue. He wondered how long it's been there and what it has witnessed through the decades. Ryou shrugged at himself for wondering about something like that.

"Why am I even wondering about something like that?" Ryou said to no one in particular.

"Wondering about what?" Ryou nearly jumped at the voice. He turned to see who it was, he found himself looking at Ogasawara Sachiko, Hasekura Rei, and Nijo Noriko.

"Jeez…I know about the whole 'walking slowly is preferred here' but you girls shouldn't sneak up on other people like that…" Ryou said with a sigh. Rei and Noriko looked at each other.

"Well, I apologize if we startled you. That aside, may I ask what you were doing here?" Sachiko said with a cool and calm voice.

"Looking at her and wondering…" Ryou motioned to the Mary statue to his right.

"Wondering? About what?" Rei asked the young man. Ryou looked at the statue again.

"How long it's been there, watching over everyone who passes by…about all the stuff it's witnessed over the decades…" Ryou mused. He looked back at the girls and noticed something.

"Where are Yumi-san and the others? Aren't there supposed to be six of you?" Ryou asked while pointing at the Yamayurikai.

"Oh…you haven't heard?" Noriko asked as if Ryou should have known why the others were not there.

"Heard what?" Ryou tilted his head at the question.

"All the second years are off in their class trip to Italy. They won't be back for a few more days." Rei answered Ryou's question.

_Italy?_ Ryou remembered that someone mentioned a trip Italy before…but he's not sure.

"So you three are the only ones left in the Yamayurikai?" Ryou asked. The three girls nodded.

"Must be tough…" The Nekomi student mused. Sachiko shook her head

"Not at all…we are much more resilient than we look Miyamoto-san." Sachiko said confidently. Ryou shrugged.

"So I've noticed…" Ryou said offhandedly. The four of them walked off to the main gate and parted ways after that. Ryou was walking back to his apartment when he wondered about what he had been told.

_Italy huh? I wish WE had trips like that._ Ryou quickly dismissed the idea since his Sempai's, with the exception of Keiichi and Belldandy, can't stick to a budget to save the world.

...

Speaking of Italy…

Yumi and her friends have been tossed around the great sights of Italy from the Vatican to Venice. Today, they were in Pisa. Out on a whim, Yumi, Yoshino, Mami, and Tsutako decided to try to climb up the leaning tower.

"Yoshino-chan…are you sure that you should come along? I don't think that Rei-sama would approve of you climbing up with us." Yumi said as she struggled with the diagonal steps of the tower. Yoshino just gave her a dismissive laugh.

"That's why I didn't ask her for permission. All I said was that it would be nice if I could climb this and she agreed." Yoshino said with a smile. Yumi nearly lost her balance at her friend's words.

"I'm amazed that your hand wasn't bitten off by the mouth of truth." Yumi said with a nervous laugh.

"That's because I didn't lie now did I?" Yoshino reasoned.

_She always did have a talent for finding a gray area in situations like this._ Yumi thought as she continued with her struggle to ascend the tower. When they got to some open air space, the girls were greeted with strong winds (doesn't exactly mix well with them or their skirts)

"Do you guys still want to go higher!?" Yumi yelled out to her friends.

"No..I'm good!" Mami yelled out. Yoshino agreed and they saw Tsutako doing a large 'X' with her arms. And with that, their conquest has come to an abrupt end…actually, the way back down was the most dangerous thing any of them have ever done.

"Who put these stairs here?!" Yoshino complained as she constantly struggled with her balance while making her way down the tower. It would appear that none of them ever thought that, since the way up was so difficult, the way down must be the same. They all mentally kicked themselves for that.

"Just take it slow and steady and no one gets hurt." Tsutako says while clutching onto her precious camera. They eventually made it back down safely, though their expressions suggest that they seemingly have scaled Mount Everest or something.

"I'm glad we went back down. I wouldn't know what to do if all of you wanted to go higher." Tsutako said with a sigh.

"Remind me never to do that ever again." Yoshino added. They all nodded to that.

"Oh! Yumi-san." Someone called out. The four girls turned around and saw Shimako sitting on the grass and beside her was…

"Rosa Canina…" Yumi blurted out at the sight of Shizuka Kanina

...

"Whirlwind? What's with the name?" Ryou asked Keiichi as they both stood outside a small shop. The site itself looked like it was carved out of a large shipping container. They both got startled when the door opened.

"Welcome Custo-Oh…It's just you guys…" A beautiful woman with short brown hair, wearing coveralls said. Keiichi and Ryou looked at each other and sighed.

"What do you mean 'Just you guys' we're here to work for you remember? Chihiro-san…" Keiichi said with a nervous chuckle. The woman smiled at them and nodded.

"True enough…SO WHAT ARE YOU TWO STILL STANDING THERE FOR?!" Chihiro yelled out at them.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Ryou whispered to his sempai. Keiichi just smiled

"Don't worry, as long as you stick with Chihiro-san, you'll learn a lot of cool things." Said Keiichi. Ryou looked once again at Chihiro, her hands are on her waist and she was sporting a large grin…as if measuring him up.

_The legendary founder of the Motor Club huh?_ Ryou thought to himself before entering the shop.

...

"What are you doing out here Shizuka-sama?" Yumi asked, still a bit shocked at this current development, Yoshino and the rest shared the same sentiment. Shizuka and Shikao stood up to greet the girls.

"Well…I thought that it would be nice to see all of you again." Shizuka said with her trademark smile that would make most think that she was up to something.

"But how did you know that we were here?" Yoshino asked the question this time.

"A penpal of mine told me your schedule on your trip." Shizuka replied. The girls looked at each other.

"A penpal? Is it…Sei-sama?" Yumi asked the obvious question. Shizuka and Shimako looked at each other seemingly puzzled.

"No…Shimako-san is my penpal." Shizuka said casually.

"Shimako-san?!" Yumi said with a start and they all looked at the Wisteria Maiden.

"Yes…Shizuka-sama and I exchange letters since she left Japan. Is that weird?" Shimako explained.

"It's not so much weird as it is-" Yumi never got to finish as Mami stepped forward and faced the two girls in front of them.

"Shizuka-sama, there has been a rumor floating around that Sei-sama is on tour in Italy. Do you know anything about that?" Mami was talking about that rumor that one of the students with them managed to bump into Sei a couple of days ago. There was no conclusive proof of that but…well, you've seen the OVAs…Shizuka considered Mami's words for a bit and looked at Shimako.

"Have you heard anything about this from her?" Shizuka asked Sei's former Petit Soeur. Shimako just shook her head.

"No…I never heard anything like that from her." Shimako said. Shizuka faced the other girls.

"I haven't heard anything either." Shizuka concluded. The other girls gave their respective 'oh' looks. Shizuka sighed at the thought.

"If she was here…I wish that she would have contacted me. I gave her my number here and my address too." Shizuka mused.

_Wow…that's like an open invitation…_Yumi thought to herself. They were then ushered by Shizuka to one of the many old marble buildings in the city. The girls were a bit startled when someone closed the doors and became intrigued when Shizuka stepped up to the center platform that looked like a big elevated bathtub. Then…

The call of the angels…that was the first thing Yumi thought when Shizuka started singing. She couldn't recognize the melody, and there were no words either. But even so, it was captivating to the point that some of the people around them started crying.

_Amazing…_Yumi thought. She looked at her friends who were also completely fixated at Shizuka…all except Shimako. Said rose was witnessing the whole thing but she didn't seem captivated or anything, like she was already used to it or something.

_I wonder how Shimako-san can be so calm about all this?_ The En Bouton wondered as Shizuka sang on.

...

"That was wonderful! What was that song called?" Yumi asked Shizuka. Rosa Canina's mini-concert was over and they were all hanging out around the many marble steps found here. Shizuka looked at Yumi and smiled.

"Impromptu…I just wanted to try out singing there just once. Even better that you were all there." The supposed 'Black Rose' of Lilian reasoned. Time passed by and the other girls had to go to the bathroom. This left Yumi with Shizuka.

"Umm…" Yumi tried to start a conversation but couldn't find the right words…then she suddenly remembered her classmates talking about sending out postcards to their loved ones back home.

"What is it?" Shizuka asked Yumi who was deep in thought, her face once again being the window to her soul.

"I was wondering…if it's a good idea to send out a post card to some people back home." Yumi said while looking at the sky. Shizuka considered the statement.

"Well, I do it all the time. My family isn't exactly up to speed with the times and can't keep up with emails and such." Shizuka said. Yumi suddenly stood and looked around.

"The I'll buy some and--" Yumi suddenly felt a tug on her sleeve. She looked down at the source.

"Shizuka-sama?" Yumi wondered why Shizuka was stopping her.

"Don't worry, I always keep some spare postcards in case I suddenly want to send out a message to my family." Shizuka's level of preparedness is astounding. Said astounding person pulled out a postcard and handed it to Yumi.

Yumi took the postcard and started writing. She had one person in mind while she was doing this. The pen seemingly moving on it's own as she jotted down the feelings she wanted to send back to that person. She suddenly considered something.

"What's wrong?" Shizuka asked. Yumi stared at the card for a bit before looking at her companion.

"It just seems out of place to end it plainly…Do you have any suggestions?" Yumi asked. Shizuka thought for a moment on what Yumi meant.

"What about Ciao Sorella? It means 'see you, sister' in Italian." Shizuka said. Yumi agreed and immediately wrote it as the end of her card. She looked around to see if there are any mailboxes around. There were none.

"Those things disappear when you need them the most don't they?" Shizuka commented. Yumi nodded.

"Don't worry, I'll send it out for you later." Shizuka said in a reassuring voice.

"Tell me, do you have a Petit Soeur yet?" Shizuka asked out of the blue. Yumi just stared at her for a while before looking down.

"No not yet…I haven't really considered having one yet." Yumi admitted, she was so contented with being with Sachiko and the rest of the Yamayurikai that she had forgotten that she needs to find a little sister as well. Yumi was considering her options about that when she suddenly remembered something.

"Shizuka-sama…would it be okay if I ask for another postcard?" Yumi requested.

"Sure, no problem." Shizuka hands Yumi another card. Yumi immediately started writing on the other card as well. Shizuka wondered who that other card was for but refrained from commenting about it. Afterall…

_Seeing her all focused like that makes me feel bad for interrupting her._ Shizuka thought to herself. After a while, Yumi finally finished with the second card but as she was about to write the address…

_That's right…I don't even know where he lives…_Yumi's impulsive side backfired as the second card that was supposed to be for Ryou can't even be sent out. Yumi sighed at her shortsightedness.

"What's wrong?" Shizuka inquired. Yumi looked at her with a defeated expression.

"I was planning to give this to a friend back home since I wasn't able to tell him that I was going away on a trip…but I don't know his address and…" Yumi didn't have the heart to continue. She suddenly felt Shizuka's hand on her shoulder. She looked at her senior.

"Then just give it to you friend when you get back." Shizuka said. Yumi nodded and gave the first postcard to Shizuka.

"Thank you so much Shizuka-sama." Yumi bowed after giving the card, she put the other one in her bag. The other girls were making their way back from the toilet and were waving at Yumi.

"Make sure you write to me when you find a Petit Soeur alright?" Shizuka proposed. Yumi looked at her and smiled

"Sure thing!"

...

The second years managed to get back safely to their own country and managed to get back to their regular routines. The three members of the Yamayurikai were not exceptions.

"Yumi, would you please join me outside for a bit?" Sachiko asked Yumi before finishing up the organizing of paperwork.

"Sure…" Yumi said, a bit curious of her Onee-sama's tone of voice. Outside, Yumi leant against the wall while Sachiko stood there and looked at her seemingly bothered with something.

"What's wrong Onee-sama?" Yumi asked.

"What's wrong? You mean you don't know? What are you going to do about it?" Sachiko said, in an uncertain tone that was thought to be non-existent in the queen of Lilian.

"About what?" Yumi tipped her head, obviously oblivious to the whole thing. Sahciko then reached in her pocket and pulled out a card.

"This thing that just arrived in the mail." Sachiko said while holding the postcard in front of Yumi's face. Yumi had to take a few seconds to regis—

"EEEHHH!!!" Okay…sooner than that but still…Yumi had just realized that the post card that she had asked Shizuka to snail mail to Sachiko arrived two days after she returned from the trip.

"How am I supposed to reply to something like this?" Sachiko said, a bit flustered. Yumi could understand the situation now but still thought that Sahciko was a bit over reactive.

"Well, I can just throw it away if yo--" Yumi was reaching out for the card but Sachiko quickly pulled it away and put it back in her pocket.

"How can I possibly throw this away!?" Sachiko said before opening the door again.

"But…I'm glad that I wasn't the only one who was lonely…" Sachiko said before heading back inside. Yumi just stood there in a trance.

"I guess…That's how Onee-sama is when she feels embarrassed." Yumi wondered (tsun-dere Sachiko is 3). She suddenly remembered that she had another card to give.

...

Yumi had managed to squeeze out the location of Nekomi Institute of Technology from Yuuki. Turns out that her brother and Ryou had become quite good friends and Ryou was apparently helping Yuuki with a certain problem, what that was though was not disclosed. And here she was, the Yamayurikai didn't have a meeting today so she made a mad break to the University, thankfully it was only a few stations away. She looked around and saw all the people walking around and doing their own things to notice her even though she stuck out in her uniform.

"Umm…excuse me…are you lost?" a kind and gentle voice said from behind Yumi. The girl turned around and saw the arguably most beautiful woman she had ever seen in her life. She had a light brown, almost blonde hair and a perfectly colored skin that was European-like, it reminded her of Sei. And her face was beauty that could rival even Maria-sama herself even though she did have odd triangular marks on her forehead and cheeks. In one word…

"Goddess…" Yumi whispered. The woman was slightly surprised at the remark but smiled back at Yumi.

"Yes?" She replied like she had taken Yumi's words literally. Yumi snapped out of her daze at the voice and she instinctively bowed.

"I'm sorry! It was just that you were so beautiful and I…um..I…" Yumi felt hands on her shoulders that ushered her to stand upright.

"It's quite alright. Now, how may I help you?" The woman asked. Yumi could only blush at the sight before her she turned away as if looking at this woman in the eye would melt her on the spot.

"Umm..I'm looking for a friend of mine. He's supposed to be studying here but I don't really know where to start looking or if he's even here." Yumi said in a dejected tone. Again, her impulsiveness got the best of her.

"May I know his name? I may know who he is." The woman offered.

"His name? Um..It's..uuhh…Mi-Miyamoto…R-Ryou-san…" Yumi stuttered.

"You are a friend of Miyamoto-san?" The woman said in surprise. Yumi looked at her in similar surprise.

"You know him?" Yumi asked. The woman nodded.

"Yes…I am a fellow member of the club he is in and his senior…my name is Belldandy. Nice to meet you." Bell said in her usual radiant self.

"I'm..Fukuzawa…Yumi…" Yumi said. Bell seemed to be thinking about something at that moment.

"Could you be in any way related to Fukuzawa Yuuki-san?" Bell asked. Yumi was startled at that question.

"You know my brother?!" Yumi asked in utter disbelief. I think you can imagine her expression at this point.

"Yes…Miyamoto-san brought him here some time ago about something. I thought you seemed familiar." Bell said. Yumi just replied with a nervous laugh. Bell suddenly started walking.

"Umm..where are you going?" Yumi asked. Belldandy looked back.

"To the club room, Miyamoto-san should be there by now. Would you care to join us?" Bell offered. Yumi smiled at that.

"Of course! Belldandy-sama!" Yumi exclaimed before following her.

...

The door to the club room opened and sure enough, Ryou was there sitting on a chair with his head was on the desk, using his arms as pillows.

"He seems to be tired…" Bell said. Yumi saw him as well. Ryou shifted his head a bit.

"Sup Bell-sempai…sorry, I'm a bit incapacitated today." Ryou said in a lazy tone.

"What happened?" Yumi asked. Ryou suddenly sat up straight at the sound of Yumi's voice.

"Yumi-san?!" He exclaimed while doing a pretty decent 'Yumi'. Bell giggled at his reaction.

"Yes, she came here looking for you." Bell explained. Ryou looked at Yumi.

"Looking…for me? What for?" Ryou asked before standing up. He was currently wearing his blue coveralls he uses whenever he's working on a project. Bell placed her bag on the table and made for the door.

"Bell-sempai?" Ryou called out.

"I'm going to fetch Keiichi-san. Keep her company, you were the reason she's here afterall." Bell said before going out. Ryou scratched his head and looked at Yumi who was looking around the room.

"Pretty nasty huh? And this is AFTER we cleaned the place up." Ryou mused.

"But its very livey…I like it." Yumi said.

"So...what is this visit about? You didn't just come here to look at the room did you?" Ryou's question was answered when Yumi pulled out the postcard and handed it to Ryou.

"What's this? A love letter?" Ryou said casually. Yumi suddenly blushed like mad.

"WHAT?! No way! That's absolutely impossible!!!" Yumi said while throwing her arms around. Ryou felt a sweat drop.

_I know that you're just trying to save face but…ouch!_ Ryou thought before reading the card.

...

_Greetings Ryou-san,_

_I'm writing from Pisa, Italy. It's wonderful here! We have learned so much and the sights and sounds were almost too much to take in. I'm sorry if I didn't tell you about this but there was just no time to. Anyway, hope to see you soon!_

_Yumi_

...

"See you soon huh?" Ryou commented. Yumi flinched at his words.

"Well, I didn't know your address and I wasn't able to send it out properly and I know that it was stupid of me to still give it to you even though I'm already here so if you want it then you can just throw it away, don't worry I won't get mad or anything." Yumi said in one breath of air…which is astounding. Ryou snickered and put the card in his backpack which was on the floor.

"Nah…I'll keep it…late or not, this is still the first thing I've ever gotten from Italy and there's no way I'm letting go of it." Ryou said before zipping up his bag. He turned to Yumi.

"Thanks Yumi-san." Ryou said. Yumi smiled and nodded.

"Yeah…" Yumi replied. The atmosphere was suddenly broken as Tamiya and Ohtaki burst in.

"MIYAMOTO!!! Are you done fixing the suspensi--" Tamiya froze at the sight of Ryou with Yumi.

"Uh-oh…" Ryou said as he felt the killing intent of his two sempais.

"MIYAMOTOOOOOOOOO!!!" Tmaiya yelled out before tackling Ryou.

"How dare you bring a highschool girl in the sacred grounds?!" Tamiya asked as he headlocked Ryou.

"But Bell-sempai was the one who brought her here!!" Ryou reasoned…yeah, reasoning with those two…that'll get you somewhere. Yumi was backing away from the chaos and was seriously considering calling the police. When she opened the door, she saw Belldandy with a man. He had short black hair and was shorter than Belldandy.

"Oh! Hello Fukuzawa-san." Belldandy greeted.

"Belldandy-sama!!!" Yumi exclaimed.

_Sama?!_ Keiichi wondered.

"You have to help Ryou-san! They're killing him!" Yumi frantically said while pointing at the pileup. The two just looked back at Yumi and smiled.

"Don't worry…that's just normal. They won't do anything that will permanently harm Miyamoto-san." Belldandy said in her most reassuring voice, though it was a bit misplaced give the current situation. And with that, Yumi got a taste of Ryou's world.

...

And that wraps up the OVAs! Next chapter will start the intertwining storyline with Attraction & Repulsion! Please R&R!


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything on this fic that can be used against me in a court of law.**

**...**

The second semester for Lilian is in full swing and everyone is starting to get pumped in anticipation for the school festival…well, as pumped as Lilian girls can be anyway. Yumi for one is greatly looking forward to this event because she can use this to further mend the damage between her and Kanako. She was up-and-up when she got to school that morning. She stopped in front of the Mary statue as usual and offered her morning prayer.

_Maria-sama…please let this School Festival be a very memorable one for everyone. We'll all do our best so please allow this School Festival to be special._

"Amen…" Yumi finished. She noticed something in the corner of hr eye…something…tall. Yumi turned to see who it was and saw Hosokawa Kanako.

"Kanako-chan!" Yumi exclaimed. Kanako finished her prayer and smiled at Yumi.

"Gokigenyo Yumi-sama…" Kanako said in a more gentle tone than she usually uses on people. Yumi spaced out a bit after seeing Kanako and wasn't able to respond until a few seconds later.

"Ahh! Gokigenyo Kanako-chan…" Yumi sheepishly said while giving Kanako a wry face.

_Yumi-sama is so adorable like that…I guess that, even if she's not the perfect Rosa Chinensis En Bouton, she's still special._ Kanako thought to herself.

"We're having a meeting about the play for the School Festival after school…You'll attend right?" Yumi asked. Kanako's eyes shifted.

"…..Yes, of course." Kanako said hesitantly.

"Kanako-chan?" Yumi called out, a bit worried about her reaction. Kanako shook her head.

"Don't worry Yumi-sama. I'm fine." Kanako said in her usual tone.

"If you say so…" Yumi said. They both then made their way to their respective classes.

...

Click! Click! Click! Went Tsutako's camera the moment Yumi arrived in the classroom. She turned to her Canon Digital SLR Camera equipped friend.

"Good morning to you too Tsutako-san…" Yumi said. She had gotten somewhat used to these kinds of greetings by her friends and, if this goes to schedule…

"Yumi-san! There was a rumor going around that you were casually talking to Hosokawa Kanako this morning, comments?" Mami asked Yumi with her trusty notebook in hand. Yumi felt a sweat drop.

_How did she find out about that so soon? Am I bugged or something?_ Yumi thought while looking at her uniform. Mami and Tsutako looked at each other as Yumi was doing that.

"What's wrong Yumi-san? Did you lose something?" Tsutako said, finally lowering her camera. Yumi looked at them for a moment and suddenly pulled a 'Yumi' at the realization of how stupid she must look. She raised her hands in defense and started shaking her head.

"No! No! It's nothing I swear!" Yumi defended herself but only raising even more suspicion from her two friends…and those two are the worst people to get suspicious.

'Staaaaaaare…' Tsutako and Mami looked at Yumi like she was a strange alien or something.

"Wh-what?" Yumi asked, getting herself overly nervous again. Thankfully, Yoshino showed up before anything else could happen.

"Don't you girls ever get tired to grilling poor Yumi-san like that?" Yoshino asked the two girls grilling Yumi.

"Not at all…Yumi-san is so dynamic that it never gets boring." Mami said, at least she's honest. And with that, another regular day in Lilian started. No one would have ever expected that this was the start of something big…well, for two girls anyway, but you should all know that by now.

...

"Are you sure that the frame can take a motor that size?" Keiichi worriedly asked as Ryou mounted a small but heavy motor on a small motorcycle frame. The frame was so small that you'd mistake it for a child's toy, when in fact; it's an ongoing pet project of the NIT Motor Club. The basic premise is to try to make the smallest possible motorcycle that someone can safely ride, though at times 'safety' is thrown out the window. Ryou smirked as he finished installing the motor.

"I find you lack of faith disturbing. Weren't you the one who said that we should start trying out a more powerful motor and see how far we can push this frame setup?" Ryou contested before finishing up the installation of the motor.

"Well, I did…but pushing for something that's forty percent more powerful than the previous motor is a bit much." Keiichi said, his words falling on deaf ears. Belldandy was about to open the door to the clubhouse when a loud boom followed by some smoke came out. Belldandy immediately stormed inside to find Ryou and Keiichi medium rare.

"Keiichi-san! Ryou-san! Are you two okay?!" Belldandy asked even though it was pretty obvious that neither of them were okay. The two guys looked at each other, Keiichi giving his junior a flat stare.

"Okay…maybe I WAS a bit overzealous about that…At least we know the limit of what this setup can take right?" Ryou said with a weak laugh.

"Clean this up…" was all Keiichi replied.

"At once…"

...

Yumi and the rest of the Yamayurikai have gone their own ways after the afternoon meetings and Yumi and Sachiko were the only ones left in the Rose Mansion. Sachiko was fixing up her things while Yumi was waiting for her though she had something on her mind at the time, naturally Sachiko noticed immediately via Yumi's window to her soul…her face.

"What is it this time?" Sachiko asked like it was a usual matter. Yumi pretty much figured that she couldn't hide her problem, at least to Sachiko of all people.

"It's about Kanako-chan…" Yumi said in a subdued voice.

"Hosokawa-san? What about her?" Sachiko asked before closing her bag and standing up. Yumi stood up as well and opened the door.

"Well, I made her promise to help out with the play in the school festival in exchange for her taking a picture with me…" Yumi said while she and Sachiko went down the stairs.

"And what's the problem with that? Just take a picture with her then. You have a friend that can easily take care of that right?" Sachiko was of course talking about Tsutako. Yumi understood this but with Yumi being Yumi, she tends to overdo things.

"But just taking a random picture together is too mundane…Since she will go out of her way to help us in the school festival I just thought that…you know…" Sachiko sighed at Yumi's words. She had learned long ago that this girl tends to go above and beyond the call of duty for someone she cares for, she herself had been fortunate enough to be one of those people.

"Oh Yumi…you don't have to try so hard especially if it's something as simple as that. You might just end up ruining the whole thing if you overdo it." Sachiko warned her little sister.

"Yeah…I guess your right." Yumi knew that Sachiko was right but it really didn't help one bit. The two girls finished praying to the Mary statue and headed for the main gate, they were suddenly greeted by a loud stomp accompanied by an angry voice.

"STUPID LAWS OF PHYSICS!!!" Ryou yelled out while stomping on the ground a few times as he remembered what happened in the club house a few hours ago.

"I have half a mind to drag Sir Isaac Newton out of his grave and tear him a new one!" Ryou seethed even though the man who came up with the basic laws of physics had nothing to do with what happened to him. The two red roses were completely shocked at Ryou's display of...some may say passion…others…Idiocy. Sachiko was thinking of the latter.

"I don't know what feud you have with how our world works but I would appreciate it if you would refrain from voicing out your frustrations here Miyamoto-san!" Sachiko emphatically said. Ryou and Yumi were both in awe at Sachiko's sudden burst of awesomeness. Afterall, Lilian was HER turf; Sachiko won't let anyone sully the integrity of her school while she was around. Ryou finally realized how stupid he was acting and looked down on the ground while scratching the back of his head.

"…sorry…" He meekly said. Sachiko raised a brow while Yumi just chose to stay out of Sachiko's way for now.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't hear you. I'm sure you can do better than that considering how loud you were yelling a while ago." Sachiko wasn't going to let Ryou get out of it so easily and the young man knew it.

_Jeez…I feel like I'm talking to Mishima-sempai or Urd-san like this…_Ryou recalled the way both women used to treat him. She looked at Sachiko and then at Yumi.

_How she gets along so well with her, I'll never know…Not to mention that Yuu—_Ryou's train of thought got cut off when Sachiko approached him.

"I'm waiting Miyamoto-san…" Sachiko said with a low voice. Ryou gulped at that as did Yumi.

"I'm very sorry of disturbing the tranquil peace of your fine school! I hope that you can find it in your heart to forgive this brazen and uncultured barbaric idiot! Ma'am!" Ryou said while bowing to Sachiko. The queen nodded in approval of his apology.

"Well said…It would seem that you have done this before have you not?" Sachiko took one last shot at Ryou for good measure.

"Not really…" Ryou shrugged off that comment. In fact, Sachiko was right on the money when she thought that Ryou had done that before since he had done apologies like that several times with Keiichi thanks to their mutual sempais. Yumi finally decided to come out of figurative hiding and made her presence known.

"So..what WERE you doing yelling out all of that stuff?" Yumi inquired and breaking the tension between Ryou and Sachiko.

"Oh…there was an accident back in the club house in the University. I had to clean up because of the explosion." Ryou said sheepishly, the two girls gasped.

"Explosion?! Are you alright Ryou-san?!" Yumi asked even though the answer was pretty obvious.

"I'm still here aren't I?" Ryou replied, the two Soeurs looked at each other and back at Ryou though their worried expressions were still there. Ryou sighed at the two girls.

"Don't worry, it was nothing serious. We…I just overdid a little experiment that's all. It was mostly just smoke anyway, nothing serious." Ryou said flatly.

"Well…If you say so…" Yumi hesitantly said which made Ryou breath a sigh of relief.

"But really…to yell out like that in the middle of a public walkway is just too much Miyamoto-san." Sachiko once again reminded Ryou of his idiocy.

"Yes yes…I apologize…" Ryou half-heartedly said as he and Sachiko went into another stare-off. Yumi sighed and wondered why these two can't casually get along with each other.

"In any case, are you heading home now Ryou-san?" Yumi asked just for the sake of breaking the stalemate between her Onee-sama and her friend. The NIT student looked at her and sighed.

"I wish I could say that but the landlord is fumigating the whole building and it won't be safe to go back in until late in the evening." Ryou said with a dejected look.

"Whaaat?! Then…where will you stay until you can return?" Yumi asked, Sachiko sighed at her Soeur's need to know so much about other people. She thought that it may have been the influence of one Mizuno Youko. Sachiko shrugged at the thought of Yumi turning into another Youko before turning back to the conversation they were having.

"Not sure…I guess I'll lurk around the town for a while. Not much I can do about it." Ryou admitted while looking upwards. True to his words, he didn't know where to pass the time. He can't deviate from his budget since it'll just cause problems later on in the month. He can't ask his Aunt for help either since there are no outsiders allowed inside the convent no matter who they know. Yumi was thinking about how she could possible help Ryou since he's been helping her and Yuuki whether he wanted to or not for the past several weeks.

"I know!" Yumi declared confidently, Sachiko and Ryou looked at her with imaginary question marks over their heads. Yumi then gave both of them a wide smile, you know…one of those 'Yumi' smiles that can invoke World Peace.

"Know…" Ryou trailed off to urge Yumi to just tell them what she had in her mind.

"You can stay at our house for the time being!" Yumi just unwittingly invoked one of the oldest most clichéd event flags in anime, manga and light novel history…the legendary "come over to my house for a while" flag. Ryou knew about said legendary flag but Sachiko is a bit of an idiot when it comes to those kinds of things. Either way, they both just blankly stared at Yumi like she had just killed someone with her bare hands right in front of them.

"Ummm…" Yumi's confidence was quickly evaporating. Sachiko cleared her throat as to get everyone's attention in the matter.

"Yumi, I know that you are now friends with Miyamoto-san but that does not mean that you can just casually invite him over to your home without warning." Sachiko sternly said. Yumi looked at Ryou and saw that he was nodding along with what Sachiko was saying.

"That's right. Don't you think that your parents would freak if you suddenly just came home with a guy tagging along? I wouldn't be surprised if your dad would drive me out with a large blunt object." Ryou said matter-of-factly. Yumi lowered her head.

"Even so I…" Yumi said in a depressed tone and was at the verge of tears.

"Yumi…" Sachiko regarded her little sister's disappointment; she looked at Ryou who was thinking of the same thing.

_Just can't win against something like that…_What they were thinking about is Yumi's ultimate weapon, the Yumi pout of submission.

"Fine…I'll go…" Ryou said in a defeated tone, Sachiko sighed as she can't really go against it now. Yumi looked up at them in wonder; she saw that both Sachiko and Ryou were wearing apologetic smiles.

"But I swear, if I'm not welcome, I'll be out of there faster than Battle Hopper!" Ryou said seriously.

"Battle Hopper? What's that?" Yumi asked in genuine curiosity of what the hell he was talking about that, obviously if Yumi can't understand what Ryou was talking about then there was an even lower chance that Sachiko would.

"Nevermind…let's just go…" Ryou dejectedly said. The two Red Roses looked at each other puzzled.

_Why must I randomly geek out like that?!_ Ryou thought to himself.

...

"I'm ho~me!" Yumi declared after entering the house, Ryou was close behind. Yumi's mom came out to greet her daughter and was in for something a little more.

"Welcome home Yumi--" Yumi's mom froze at the sight of Ryou standing behind Yumi. Ryou didn't feel comfortable at all with her reaction and placed a hand on the back of his head while bowing.

"Ummm…Good evening. My name is Miyamoto Ryou, nice to meet you madam." Ryou said with as much respect as he could. Yumi's mom took a half-step back in shock.

"Uhh—Th-this is a friend of mine Okaa-san. Is it okay if he stayed over for dinner?" Yumi said in a reserved tone, her cheeks having a tinge of pink as she said that.

_Jeez…for some reason people might get the wrong idea if you say it like that._ Ryou thought while giving a sour look. Yumi's mom managed to regain her composure; she cleared her throat to reassert her authority.

"Yumi, I never heard that you would be bringing a…friend home. It's a bit inconsiderate of you to just suddenly do this don't you think?" Mrs. Fukuzawa said in a stern tone, Yumi winced at her mom's words. Ryou knew that this wasn't going well so…

"Please! Don't get mad at Yumi-san, she was just trying to help me. If it's really too much trouble then I can leave now." Ryou said in defense of Yumi.

"Ryou-san…" Yumi regarded her friend; her mom was surprised that he said that without any hesitation. Ryou looked at Yumi and gave her a sad smile.

"I'm really glad that you went to all the trouble to help me like this but if it just gets you in trouble then I don't want any part of it." Ryou said, his face becoming more serious. He then turned around and opened the door.

"Thanks a lot though…I really appreciate what you did." Ryou said while looking back at Yumi. He was about to walk out when…

"Wait!" Both teenagers looked at the source of the protest, Yumi's mom. Mrs. Fukuzawa had an apologetic expression. Ryou suddenly noticed the stark resemblance between mother and daughter, especially the eyes.

"I'm sorry for my earlier outburst, I was just surprised at this sudden visit. We don't really have a lot of friends of our children visit the house so we are not very used to it. And on the contrary to what I may have appeared before, I would be glad to have such a nice friend of my daughter over for dinner." Yumi said with all the kindness and radiance that Yumi herself possesses.

"Umm...are you sure ma'am? I mean, I don't want to intrude or anything." Ryou said since if Mrs. Fukuzawa is anything like her daughter then she could just be doing this out of sheer kindness. Mrs. Fukuzawa giggled and held her cheek.

"Oh dear! Such a respectful young man, I knew that my daughter had good tastes. How long have the two of you been dating?" the question made both of the teens blush and freeze their brains. It took a full fifteen seconds before Yumi finally managed to give any kind of response, and with Yumi being Yumi, the response was along the lines of…

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!" was the reaction heard round the world. Ryou felt his soul leaving him.

_I should have anticipated this kind of reaction as well…I have erred._ Ryou sighed at the silliness of the anime cliché-ness of this whole situation. He cleared his throat to get the attention of both women.

"Mrs. Fukuzawa, Yumi-san and I are not dating. The reason why I'm here is because the apartment building I live in is being fumigated and I won't be able to go back until later tonight. Yumi-san kindly offered her hospitality even though she did not have to, and for that I am very thankful." Ryou said before smiling at Yumi. The Rosa Chinensis En Bouton returned the gesture to her friend.

"Ryou-san…"

"Are you sure that nothing is going on between you two?" Mrs. Fukuzawa eyed them suspiciously after their little exchange.

"WE'RE SURE!" They both said at the same time. Mrs. Fukuzawa sighed.

"Well…I guess there's plenty of time for that to develop…" Yumi's mom mused before returning to the kitchen. Ryou and Yumi looked at each other.

"Um..I'll go change, you can wait in the living room okay?" Yumi said, changing the subject. Ryou simply nodded, not wanting to contribute to this silliness any further, and walked to the living room which Yumi pointed out.

...

Ryou set his shoulder bag down on the floor and sat down on the couch. He looked around the Fukuzawa's living room. Despite Lilian's reputation for being an exclusive school for the wealthy the Fukuzawa's seem to only be of an upper middle-class family, not that rich but by no means poor. Ryou though that the whole setup was…comfy.

"Pretty comfy setup…" Ryou repeated the narrator. He got himself to finally relax on the couch and recalled everything that has happened today.

"Not exactly one of my best days…" Ryou assessed considering the explosion in the club house, the cleanup of said club house, the little spat with Sachiko and the apparent misunderstanding with Yumi's mom. Ryou thought of the cliché way his introduction to the Fukuzawa home went, he pretty much expected Yumi's dad to go postal on him when he comes home but Ryou was too tired and the couch was to comfy and soon he found himself drifting off to sleep.

Yumi came down after a while wearing a pink shirt with a bunny holding an oversized carrot in its paws, she also wore beige shorts and slippers. She walked into the living room and found her mom placing a blanket on Ryou's unconscious form; her mom noticed her and placed her finger on her lips telling Yumi to keep quiet. Yumi nodded and joined her mom in the kitchen. Mrs. Fukuzawa was busy cooking dinner for five and Yumi was sitting on one of the stools in the kitchen and watched her mom prepare dinner.

"He seemed pretty tired." Mrs. Fukuzawa said while chopping some vegetables. Yumi looked at her mom the back at the direction of the living room.

"Yeah, he said that a lot happened today so I guess it's understandable that he's tired." Yumi mused.

"But it is still quite surprising that you would suddenly bring a friend home, and a boy no less." Mrs. Fukuzawa giggled a bit after saying that. Yumi naturally blushed at the statement but she knew it was true. Yuuki has brought friends over before but not even the members of the Yamayurikai have been in her house. Yet here she was, bringing Ryou home with her and even though the circumstances were the ones that dictated this outcome, she could understand where her mom was coming from.

"Sorry for that, but he's been helping me so much lately and he didn't even have to. He just did it because he could." Yumi said. Her mom giggled again at something she just thought of.

"I guess he's more like an Onii-sama for you as supposed to Sachiko-san being your Onee-sama." Mrs. Fukuzawa pointed out. Yumi smiled at the thought and agreed with her mom. Ryou's help and guidance at times was indeed like that of Sachiko's though their methods for doing so are drastically different.

"Or would you rather him be something else to you…?" Mrs. Fukuzawa said in a sly tone.

"Okaa-san!" Yumi exclaimed, her mom can be such a kid sometimes…guess it really does run in the family. But before anything else could happen…

"WHAAAAAAA!!!" Yuuki's scream echoed throughout the house. The two women of the Fukuzawa household looked in the direction of the scream.

"Oh…I forgot about that…" Yumi said to herself.

...

"The hell kinda alarm clock is tha—oh, hey Yuuki-san. Sup?" Ryou said, still half-asleep and probably oblivious to where he was at the moment. Yumi and her mom came into the living room to see exactly what happened. Ryou looked around with dazed eyes and finally realized where he was.

"Oh…right…" was all he said. Yuuki looked at him with a severe look of surprise.

"That's all you're going to say?!" Yuuki protested. Ryou gave him a bored look.

"Yes, if you want more info, then ask your sister, I'm too lazy to explain this again." Ryou said bluntly before sitting up straight. Yuuki looked at her sister and Yumi gulped before explaining what happened, their mom went back in the kitchen to finish up dinner since Yuuki has arrived, it was only a matter of time before Mr. Fukuzawa came home as well.

"So that's what happened…" Yuuki mused and sighed afterwards, Ryou eyed him suspiciously.

"What were you expecting?" Ryou asked, Yuuki simply shrugged at Ryou's rhetorical question. Yuuki then looked at his sister.

"I sure hope dad will be okay with this." Yuuki said, Ryou and Yumi went silent at his words. Their mom was one thing, but who knows how their father would react to his daughter bringing a guy home for dinner.

"If you're all worried about you father then don't worry, I can handle him." Mrs. Fukuzawa yelled out from the kitchen. All three were in awe at the timing?

_Don't tell me that mom…_Yumi started.

_Heard us all the way from the kitchen…_Yuuki continued.

_No way! She must have just anticipated this that's all!_ Ryou concluded. They all sighed at the same time. But as if to continue the comic timing, the door opened and everyone knew who that would be.

"I'm home!" Mr. Fukuzawa's voice was heard through the house. The three teenagers in the living room immediately tensed up. Mrs. Fukuzawa came out of the kitchen to greet her husband.

"Welcome home dear. How was work?" Mrs. Fukuzawa asked before kissing her beloved.

"The usual. Are the kids home?" Mr. Fukuzawa asked while loosening his tie. Mrs. Fukuzawa nodded before picking up his suitcase and coat.

"And Yumi brought a friend home for dinner so mind your manners dear. Dinner will be ready in a few minutes." Mrs. Fukuzawa said before walking off.

_A friend? Maybe from the Yamayurikai or something?_ Mr. Fukuzawa thought before heading to the living room.

"Yumi, I heard that you brought a friend hom--" Mr. Fukuzawa was cut short at the sight of Ryou sitting on the couch with the Fukuzawa siblings. The three teenagers flinched when he stopped mid-sentence and stood up at the same time.

"Welcome home dad!" Yumi and Yuuki said at the same time. Ryou fixed himself up since he was sleeping a while ago, he then bowed to the head of the household.

"Good evening Mr. Fukuzawa. I'm Yumi's friend, Miyamoto Ryou. It's a pleasure to meet you sir." Ryou said with as much manners as he did with . When, after ten seconds, there was still no visible response from Mr. Fukuzawa, all of them started to get nervous. That was until Mrs. Fukuzawa came in with a large pot.

"Dinner is ready!" She yelled before walking back to the dining room. Ryou immediately walked up to her.

"Umm…I can help you carry the dishes. It's the least I could do for your hospitality." Ryou said before relieving Mrs. Fukuzawa of the pot.

"Why thank you Ryou-san!" Mrs. Fukuzawa said.

_Calling him by his first name already?_ The siblings thought at the same time. They then looked at their dad who was still frozen.

_We should do something about him too…_They thought.

...

"Oh! Now I understand! I apologized for my earlier reaction." Mr. Fukuzawa laughed off the statement while they were all having dinner. Yumi was sitting next to Yuuki who was sitting next to Ryou, Their parents were sitting across from them.

"Not at all sir. I apologize for suddenly coming here without any warning." Ryou said.

"Don't worry about it. You've been helping our children so much lately so it's no problem at all." Mrs. Fukuzawa said, her husband nodded as well. The three teens looked at each other and smiled. After dinner, Ryou was helping Mrs. Fukuzawa with the dishes while Yuuki and Mr. Fukuzawa were in the living room, Yumi went upstairs for some reason.

"Thank you for helping me with the dishes. You're quite used to this kind of thing aren't you?" Mrs. Fukuzawa said, Ryou nodded.

"I live on my own so this kind of thing is essential if I want to survive." He said while wiping the wet dishes, Mrs. Fukuzawa did the washing.

"I see, well come over whenever you feel like it. Those two seem more energetic when you are here." Mrs. Fukuzawa said with a small laugh. Hurried footsteps were heard from the stairs.

"Ryou-san!" Yumi called out. Ryou looked in the direction of Yumi's voice. He then felt the plate and rag he was holding being taken away. He looked at saw that it was Mrs. Fukuzawa.

"You should go see what she wants." She said, Ryou nodded and went for the living room. What he saw was something he really didn't expect. It was Yumi wearing sweats and carrying a bunch of notebooks.

"What is all…this?" Ryou said while pointing at Yumi. The young woman was breathing hard and has to take a few deep breaths before being able to speak.

"Ryou-san! I just realize that since you're a University student at such a young age then you must be really smart right?!" Yumi said with conviction, Ryou felt a sweat drop.

_You just realized that now?!_ Ryou thought with a sigh.

"And I'm guessing that you want me to help you with a few subjects huh?" Ryou deduced, Yumi nodded frantically. Ryou looked at the clock and saw that he still had some time.

"Fine, I got time. Which one do you need help from?" Ryou asked. Yumi then laid all the notebooks on the table of the living room. Ryou looked over the labels of the notebooks.

"Physics, Trigonometry, Chemistry, Geometry…" Ryou was starting to see a pattern. He looked at Yumi who had a desperate look.

"So basically, all the subjects that have anything to do with numbers?" Ryou said while sifting through the pile.

"Yes! Please! This is a very rare opportunity for me to get some help from a University-level student." Yumi said with a hopeful expression.

"Alright, this is thanks for what you did. We have three hours, let's get cracking!" Ryou said as he sat down with Yumi.

...

After their study marathon, Yumi led Ryou out of the house. He has already bid farewell to Yuuki and their parents. They were currently standing in front of the house.

"Thanks a lot for your help with my studies! I actually managed to understand most of it now!" Yumi gladly said.

"You mean you didn't understand them before?!" Ryou said in surprise, Yumi just gave a weak laugh.

"Wow…well, good thing I helped you then. See you around Yumi-san." Ryou said before walking away. He looked back and saw Yumi waving to him, he returned the gesture.

_That home is…a pretty happy one._ Ryou thought as he walked off.

...

WOOT! Please R&R!


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note:** Hai Gaiz! I finally managed to get off my lazy bum and finish this chapter. I've been letting half of this chapter rot for days. Thank the Marimite Christmas Album I just got yesterday for motivating me to finish this chapter. Kanako's singing voice in Santa Clause is coming to town is made of LOVE! Anyway, enjoy the update and try to get your hands on the Marimite Christmas Album, it is made of LOVE!

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything on this fic that can be used against me in a court of law.**

_..._

_A girl was standing on a grass covered hill overlooking a city in the night, a sea of trees could be seen from behind her. She had long beautiful red hair that flowed with the breeze, she had to use her hand to keep her hair in check. She didn't seem old, in fact, she appeared to be quite young like a junior highschool student. She was wearing a long yellow dress and denim jacket, her feet were hidden in the grass. Her face could not be discerned because of the darkness and her facing the city but I could see that she was trying to say something. _

'_What would happen…When I'm gone…?'_

'_What would you do…?'_

_The girl turned to face me, as she did, the grass came alive as countless fireflies rose upwards into the night sky. The girl had beautiful but sad brown eyes, her expression, longing for an answer._

'_Will you cry for me…Ryou-kun?'_

_A blinding light followed…_

...

"Wha…?" Ryou opened his eyes to the sound of his alarm clock. He turned to look at the time. It was already 8am, time for school. He got up and turned off the alarm, before leaving his room, he remembered the dream. He bit his lower lip at the memory. When he got to the washroom and looked at the mirror, he saw that there were tears in his eyes.

'_Will you cry for me…Ryou-kun?'_

"I hate Mondays…" The young man said before washing his face.

...

Yumi was currently leaving the station. Her mind was wandering at the moment as to why neither Kanako nor Touko showed up during the meeting yesterday. She wanted some answeres today so she decided to interrogate Touko about it later. When she exited the station, she noticed Ryou walking in front of the station. She smiled at the sight of her friend and went to him.

"Ryou-san…Good Morning!" Yumi said in her usual cheerful tone but Ryou didn't seem to notice and kept on walking. Yumi wondered what was wrong and walking up behind him and tugged his backpack. Ryou noticed the resistance behind him and looked back to find Yumi holding on to his bag.

"You need something Yumi-san?" Ryou said in an uninterested voice. Yumi let go of his bag after he said that.

"Umm…no but…I just wanted to greet you that's all. I'm sorry if I bothered you." Yumi apologized. Her words were enough to snap Ryou out of his slump and realize what an ass he had just been.

"Sorry…I just have some things on my mind right now. Don't get any ideas that I hate you or anything alright?" Ryou preempted any of Yumi's usual lines of thought that the girl usually has. And with that, they started walking. Ryou glanced at Yumi who just kept walking quietly.

"You're not going to ask what's bothering me?" Ryou said without looking back at Yumi.

"Why? Did you want me to ask?" Yumi wondered.

"No…It's just that, usually you'd immediately ask what would be wrong." Ryou said.

"Well…It's because I have some things on my mind as well." Yumi replied. Ryou hummed at her words. No other words were exchanged between them for the duration of the walk. When they arrived at the gates of Lilian, Ryou didn't even bother stopping to see Yumi off and Yumi didn't want to bother him any further and just let him go on his way.

_Should I have asked him what was wrong?_ Yumi thought.

_Should I have asked her what was wrong?_ Ryou though.

...

Yumi got to her classroom and expected to be assaulted by Mami and Tsutako again but strangely, the expected assault never came. Yumi looked around a few times wondering what happened. The young rose saw Yoshino sitting in her seat and staring outside seemingly lost in thought. She approached her friend who did not seem to notice her presence.

"Gokigenyo Yoshino-san." Yumi greeted, the one the greeting was directed to said nothing. This was the second time today that Yumi was ignored on her initial greeting. She nudged her friend and Yoshino finally looked at her, she looked like a deer caught in the headlights. She was in a daze for a few seconds before she shook her head to rid herself of whatever it was she was thinking of at the moment.

"Oh…Yumi-san, gokigenyo." Yoshino said in a somewhat docile tone which reminded Yumi of her earlier days with the sicklier Yoshino.

"What's wrong?" Yumi asked her friend while fixing her things on her own desk. Yoshino just sighed and slapped both her cheeks with her hands. Yumi nearly jumped when Yoshino did that and her surprise very clearly written on the girl's face.

"Wha-What happened?!" Yumi exclaimed and went to her friend. Yoshino just gave her a smile.

"Nothing, I just needed to clear my head of something. I'm okay now, really…" Yoshino said and looked back out the window, but Yumi still had a nagging feeling at the back of her head that something was wrong. She hesitantly went back to her seat and waited for classes to start.

_Weird…Ryou-san and Yoshino-san seem pretty distracted. And I haven't seen Onee-sama, Mami-san and Tsutako-san today either. I wonder what's been going on?_ Yumi wondered on the unusual way the day started. Yumi decided to worry about these things one at a time though as she wanted to know what was up with Touko first.

...

Lunch break came by and Yumi headed to the Rose Mansion as usual to eat with her Onee-sama. When she opened the door to the meeting room of the Yamayurikai, she saw Sachiko writing something and has several books on classical literature around her. Yumi sat down beside Sachiko and the queen finally took notice of her Petit Soeur.

"Oh Yumi. I almost forgot that it was lunch time already." Sachiko said while fixing up what she was writing.

"What is that for? Is it for the University Entrance Exams of something?" Yumi asked. Sachiko took out her bentou and shook her head.

"No, this is for the play we will be doing. Which reminds me, has Yuuki-san said anything regarding Hanadera's participation in the play?" Sachiko said before she started eating, ever the professional.

"Yes, he said that the whole Hanadera Student Council will be freely at our disposal for this." Yumi said with a smile before starting to eat as well, relieved that some sense of normalcy had returned thanks to Sachiko.

"That's good since we may need all of their help for this play." Sachiko said in relief. Yumi wondered why the normally man-wary Sachiko would be happy to have several male students participate in the Yamayurikai play. A great contrast to how she was a year ago when she refused the help from even one male in the play. Granted that certain 'male' was Suguru Kashiwagi but still, it is a huge improvement over how Sachiko used to be. Yumi was very proud of Sachiko for this. But she started to wonder why they would need all the members of the Hanadera Council for the play.

"Why do we need all of them for the play? I remember that you said that we would only need Yuuki's help for the play." Yumi was talking about the time when she and the Yamayurikai tried to, and failed thanks to Yumi who went cold turkey and ratted out the whole plan to Sachiko much to Yuuki's and the rest of the Yamayurikai's subsequent embarrassment, get Sachiko over her hatred towards men by doing a surprise meeting with the Hanadera Student Council. OVA #2 people!

"Well, I was thinking of doing something different from what we usually have for the plays here." If you have read 'Attraction&Repulsion' then you should know what she means, if you don't, read it again!

"Something special huh?" Yumi pondered on what her Onee-sama could mean by that. She usually wasn't this cryptic.

"And I would like to confirm that both Touko-chan and Hosakawa-san will be participating in the play as well. Yumi?" Sachiko just had to mention them huh?

"Well, both of them said that they will help with the play but I haven't really talked to them about it since. Noriko-chan said that Touko-chan was in the Nurse's Office in the afternoon so I'm planning on talking with Touko-chan later after school about it." Yumi explained.

"Very good. You are starting to become more responsible I see. You will need that kind of initiative when you take over for me next year." Sachiko said. She had meant it as a compliment but Yumi couldn't help but feel a bit sad about her Onee-sama leaving in a few months.

"Umm…Thanks…" Yumi hesitantly said. When they had finished their respective meals, Sachiko slid a folder to Yumi.

"What is this?" Yumi said while looking at the folder.

"A preliminary draft of our play, I wanted to do Torikaebaya Monogatari as the play this year." Sachiko said while Yumi skimmed through the rough draft of the play. Yumi remembered that story since it was discussed to them back in middle school though she forgot all about it until Sachiko mentioned it a few minutes ago.

"Oh…so that's why you said that you needed the entire Hanadera Student Council's help for this…" Yumi mused as she flipped through the draft. Sachiko nodded at Yumi's words.

"Just make sure weather or not Touko-chan and Hosakawa-san will be participating so I can change the script while I still have the time to." Sachiko said to Yumi.

"I understand, I'll talk to Touko-chan about it later." Yumi said before closing the folder and giving it back to Sachiko.

...

Ryou was currently tightening some bolts on an exposed suspension system from an old Nissan for future use of the club. He has done this procedure so many times before that he can literally do it with his eyes closed. The bad thing about this is that his mind tends to wander whenever he goes on autopilot when he does these kinds of things. His mind starts to wander back to the image of that girl in his dream last night.

_Ryou-kun…_

"OW!" Ryou yelled out when the wrench he was holding slipped out of the bolt that was already too tight and his hand hit part of the suspension because of it. Ryou looked at his hand and saw that his right knuckle was bleeding.

"Damn…gotta get this patched up before it gets infected." Ryou said before going into the club house to get the first aid kit. He managed to disinfect the wound and bandage it up very easily.

_Just like old times…_Ryou thought to himself. He had been bandaged up before because he had a bit of a rough time in his last year of Junior High.

...

_A fourteen year old Ryou was currently heaving; his face was full of bruises and fresh cuts. His school uniform was tattered and dirty, in front of him was around fifteen tough-looking highschoolers, around four were already laid out on the ground unconscious. Ryou looked up at the remaining delinquents who tensed up at the look in his eyes._

_Eyes that said he was willing to kill…_

"_Give it back…" Ryou said before picking up a metal pipe on the floor that one of the now unconscious delinquents tried to use on him. The delinquents were now very much regretting their decision to steal Ryou's school bag several minutes ago. Ryou was simply walking home from school when he was ambushed by some of the very people he was standing in front of at the moment and took his bag. The bag itself was not the issue, it was what was inside that bag. Inside was a charm that his father gave him when he was a child and was his only real memento he received from his deceased father. That was the reason he was so desperate to get it back._

"_I said…GIVE IT BAAAACK!" Ryou roared before charging into the rest of the delinquents._

...

Ryou was snapped out of his memories when the door opened. Keiichi and Belldandy stepped in and saw Ryou with his right hand bandaged.

"Ryou-san! What happened?" Belldandy said in alarm. Keiichi was also worried about what happened to him. Ryou lifted up his hand to show them the bandage clearly.

"Accident, I let my guard down while calibrating the Nissan suspension." Ryou said with a sigh. Belldandy approached him to look at his hand.

"Don't worry, I've had worse…" Ryou mused before pulling his hand away from Belldandy.

...

_Ryou awoke to find himself lying on a bench on a park near where he had just had a brawl with several highschoo—_

"_Oww!" He held his throbbing head. He took several hits from the fight and he wasn't really feeling ver—_

"_MY BAG!" Ryou yelled before looking around and after interrupting the narration again. He saw is bag near his feet and immediately opened it and started rummaging through the contents. He didn't even bother with his notebooks and such and was just trying to hunt down the charm that his father gave him. He finally managed to release the breath he didn't realize he was holding when he grasped the charm in his right hand. It was just a small red charm that looked like a bag, like the ones you can get at a shrine for a few hundred yen. "Luck" was written on the charm. His dad gave it to him before he entered Junior High and several months before his father died because of illness._

"_Some luck I have…" Ryou said in irony of his situation. He then wondered what he was doing in a park. Last he remembered was that he managed to knock out all the delinquents and then--_

"_So you're awake" Said a female voice and interrupting the narration for a third time. Ryou looked up from the bench he was now sitting on and saw a girl with long flowing red hair and brown eyes. She was wearing a girl's uniform from his school. The girl was holding a first aid kit box in her hands._

'_She's the one who got me here?' Ryou wondered to himself. The girl then sat down next to him, opened the first aid kit box and started treating Ryou's wounds starting with his face. Ryou winced at the stinging sensation as the disinfectant was wiped on the wounds on his face._

"_Y—Your name…" Ryou said to the girl. She stopped what she was doing and pulled away from Ryou._

"_What about it?" She said in an indifferent tone._

"_Well…I never got it." Ryou said in all honesty. The girl simply stared at him for a few moments before coming closer to Ryou again and resuming the treatment._

"_That's because I never gave it." The girl flatly said. Ryou stared at her response for a few moments before wincing again at the pain from the disinfectant._

...

Classes have ended and Yumi immediately ran out of the classroom, seriously. Tsutako approached Yoshino to inquire about this but she just had the same distant look she had when Yumi greeted her this morning.

"Yoshino-san?" Tsutako called out to her friend who didn't even flinch. Mami approached the two girls and tapped Tsutako on the shoulder.

"Come with me…" Was all Mami said before heading out of the classroom. Tsutako followed suit and left behind a tranced Yoshino who probably didn't realize that classes were already over.

Yumi went down the stairs to where the first year classrooms are and headed directly to Touko's classroom, which is also Noriko and Kanako's classroom but you already know that. Yumi nearly ran over one of Touko's classmate when the poor girl opened the door and saw Rosa Chinensis En Bouton barreling towards her. Yumi grabbed both shoulders of the poor girl and—

"Please call out Matsudaira Touko-chan for me…" For the love of--! Ahem…Yumi said between breaths, she DID run all the way here…and interrupted the narration again…anyway, the poor nameless girl simply nodded and went over to where Touko was currently fixing up her things. She saw Touko look at her and Yumi did what was natural…she waved to her like someone greeting a long lost relative at the airport. Touko took her bag and approached Yumi.

"Gokigenyo Touko-chan." Yumi greeted her look-alike (look in your heart, you know it to be true.) Touko just gave Yumi a slightly creeped out face but decided to greet her all the same.

"Gokigenyo Yumi-sama, you wanted to see me?" Touko wanted to end this quickly if she could since she really wasn't in a talking mood right now thanks to the recent revelation she had, and still adamantly denied to herself. Yumi smiled at her and nodded.

"Could you come with me for a bit? I just need to talk to you about something." Yumi said. Touko felt her stomach turn at Yumi's words. She really didn't want to talk to anyone right now but she can't exactly push Yumi away either.

"If it's important then I guess I can accompany you Yumi-sama." Touko said with a slight blush creeping on her cheeks.

"Great! Then follow me." Yumi said before walking off. Touko simply sighed and followed Yumi.

...

Classes have also ended for Ryou and he was already on his way out of the University. He really didn't feel like going to the club today because of what was bothering him at the moment. He got onto the train and waited for his stop. On the way his mind started to drift back to his memories.

...

_The girl finished patching Ryou up and stood up and turned away from him. He stood up as well to follow her but he knew that she'd probably brush him off anyway so he didn't stop her from walking away._

"_Thank You!" Ryou said with all the sincerity he could muster at the moment, the girl stopped walking but did not turn around._

"_Thanks for helping me…I really appreciate it." Ryou said. Even if the girl would ignore his words, he still wanted to say it._

"_Haruna…" Ryou blinked when the girl talked._

"_Umm…is that your--"_

"_Sawatari Haruna…" said the girl before continuing to walk away. Ryou smiled as best he could at her words._

"_I'm Ryou! Miyamoto Ryou! Thanks again Sawatari-san!" Ryou called out to Haruna._

"_I didn't ask for your name!" Haruna yelled back before walking away even faster. Ryou went silent at her reaction._

"_Okay…Sawatari Haruna-san huh?" Ryou wondered if he could see that girl again. He smiled and thought that he had something new to look forward to at school tomorrow._

"_But how do I explain all of this to mom?" Ryou said to himself as the pain throughout his body nagged at him again._

...

Ryou snapped back to the present when he heard his stop being announced through the comm. System of the train. He shook his head and sighed.

"Why am I remembering all of this all of a sudden?!" He asked himself even though he knew that he wouldn't get an answer. He walked out of the station in melancholy.

...

_Touko-chan is pretty quiet today…I wonder what's wrong?_ Yumi wondered since usually, Touko would be complaining on why they needed to go so far to talk but now she was quite silent.

_Right! I'll ask her what's wrong!_ Yumi said before stopping. Unknown to her Touko didn't know that Yumi had stopped so…

"Ow! Touko-chan...You should watch where you're going." Yumi meekly said after getting bumped by Touko.

"Well you shouldn't have stopped so suddenly Yumi-sama. Where are we?" Touko asks. Yumi looked around and saw that they were in front of the Small Chapel where the welcoming ceremony of the new students takes place.

_Hey! I know this place!_ Yumi pointed out to herself but quickly dismissed because of her worry for Touko.

"Is there something wrong Yumi-sama?" Yumi was snapped out of her thoughts by Touko's words. Yumi suddenly remembered what they were doing there in the first place.

"How are you feeling Touko-chan?" Yumi asked Touko. The drill-haired girl was a bit confused at Yumi's vague question.

"How am I feeling? What do you mean?" Touko voiced out her confusion.

"Umm...You didn't show up to the meeting yesterday and Noriko said that you were in the Nurse's Office during the afternoon." Yumi said, I feel like I've heard this conversation before. Yumi saw Touko look down on the ground after Yumi said those things and Yumi started to worry about it again.

"Touko-chan?" called out to the silent girl and tried to reach out to Touko.

"I'm…fine Yumi-sama." Touko replies but she was still looking down. Now even Yumi could tell that something was wrong. She puts her hand back down and wonders what was wrong with Touko.

_And why doesn't she want to talk about it?_ She thought to herself. Yumi herself was starting to get depressed about this as well. She knew that Touko had no obligation to tell Yumi her problems but Yumi just wanted to help her and now she may have upset Touko by sticking her nose into something she had to relation to. With that train of thought, Yumi did the only thing she could think of.

"I'm sorry…I'm sorry Touko-chan. I should have known better than to pry into your personal business." Yumi said in all sincerity. She wanted to help Touko, but she does not want to be hated by her because she pushed the issue too far.

"Jeez...why are you always like this, apologizing for everything." Yumi had a big 'ol imaginary question mark above her head when she heard Touko say that.

"Touko-chan?" Yumi still didn't know what Touko meant by that.

"It's about Hosakawa…" Touko replied. Yumi's heart sank at that reply.

_Oh no…Did they have another argument? Noriko said that they never really get along and now they have to work together in the play because of me…_Yumi's mind was now working overtime thinking of reasons on how this could be her fault.

"Kanako-chan? Did you two have another fight? Is it about the gifts I gave you two from the class trip? I knew I should have bought something different for each of you..." Yumi blurted out. If this was part of the Marimite DVD specials then Yumi would have spirals as eyes by now.

"No...It's not about that, though it might be one of the reasons." Yumi blinked at Touko's words. Touko then began telling Yumi exactly what was bothering her and Yumi felt like she had just learned that terrorists are going to attack Tokyo and she only has twenty-four hours to stop them…insert Jack Bauer here…

"Touko-chan...and Kanako-chan?" Yumi said, having difficulty with the whole thing...imagine those spirals for her eyes again.

"It's not like that Yumi-sama!" Touko adamantly said. Yumi was taken aback by that and tried to analyze everything again.

"Then what is it? From what I understand, you are..." Yumi thought carefully on what to say next as not to make Touko mad again.

"...Attracted to Kanako-chan right?" Well played Yumi…Well played…Yumi was oblivious to Touko's impression of a tomato and was wondering about Kanako's involvement in this.

"Does Kanako know about it?" Yumi blurted out. She finally noticed Touko turning red…really red.

"NO! No way!" Touko said while doing a textbook 'Yumi'.

"Why not? You should tell her you know." Yumi said like it was the easiest thing on earth to do.

"What are you saying Yumi-sama?! I have spent half a year hating her and now you want me to tell her that I like her?!" Touko blurted out suddenly. Yumi didn't really pay attention to Touko's subsequent blush because she was too happy in what Touko just said.

_So she doesn't hate Kanako-chan anymore! That's wonderful!_ Yumi was so happy that she started to giggle.

"What is it now?!" Touko panicked. Yumi had just realized that she was giggling and Touko was panicking.

"It's just that...I never said anything about 'Liking' her. I meant that you should tell her that you don't really hate her. But if that's what you really want to say then..." Yumi trailed off because she wanted to know what Touko's reaction will be after that. It's one of the things she picked up from Mizuno Youko. She saw Touko let out a defeated sigh.

"So I guess that means that you will still help us in the play right?" Yumi decided to stop teasing Touko and get down to business. Touko looked up to her.

"Of course I will…what made you think that I wouldn't?" Touko asked Yumi.

"Well…You weren't at the meeting yesterday and you seemed a bit depressed before so I thought that you were troubled with working with Kanako-chan or something." Yumi reasoned. Though her logic was sound, she had somewhat missed the mark. Touko shook her head.

"No…I love acting too much to pull out of the play just because of one person, let alone Hosakawa." Touko said in a serious tone. Yumi smiled at Touko's resolve.

"That's wonderful then! That means that you and Kanako can become closer then!" Yumi said casually. Touko was now once again doing an impression of a tomato.

...

Yumi was walking towards the train station on her way home. She had parted with Touko at the gate since a car was waiting for Touko. Yumi was walking past a small park when she noticed Ryou sitting on one of the swings seemingly deep in thought.

_Ryou-san? I guess I should ask what's wrong with him as well…_Yumi thought before walking towards Ryou. She was practically standing right in front of Ryou before he looked up and took notice of Yumi.

"Oh…hey Yumi-san…on your way home?" Ryou said in a deadpanned voice.

"Umm…yes…is there something bothering you?" Yumi asked him before sitting on the other swing.

"Kind of…" Ryou trailed off and looked up to the sky. Yumi was getting worried again but before she could talk, Ryou looked at her directly in the eyes.

"Say…Have you ever fallen in love before?" Ryou directly asked.

"Eh?"

...

Happy Hollidays everyone! Please R&R!


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's note:** These next two chapters will be about Ryou's back story to add some depth to his character. If you don't wanna hear it then just wait until chapter ten to continue reading. Please enjoy as always.

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything on this fic that can be used against me in a court of law.**

...

Ever heard the expression _Quiet enough to hear a pin drop_? Well, the atmosphere between Ryou and Yumi was so quiet you could probably hear the air resistance from the pin falling. Ryou's question was so…random…yet so direct that someone like Yumi simply short-circuited at it.

_Say…Have you ever fallen in love before?_

"Wh—what?" Yumi finally managed to respond to Ryou's question. She saw Ryou looking back up into the sky. Yumi wondered how long she had blanked out before she regained her senses.

"Ryou-san?" Yumi tried to get the attention of her friend who was currently having the expression that he had just remembered something painful, she herself has had those moments as well as anyone who is reading this may already know. Ryou did not respond to Yumi's call, the young woman reached over and tapped his shoulder and Ryou finally flinched and looked at Yumi like she had just appeared out of nowhere. He noticed that Yumi had a worried expression, more worried than what she usually has whenever something (mostly trivial) happens. He sighed at the sight, normally he'd be pretty flattered that Yumi would worry about him so much but he has seen so many variants of that worried look that he's starting to believe that he's developed a tolerance to it.

"Sorry…did I space off on you?" Ryou asked Yumi who looked at him solemnly. Yumi just looked down and did not say anything.

_Why did he ask me that? What does he expect me to say?_ Yumi pondered. This time, Ryou was having a worried look.

"Are you okay Yumi-san? I'm sorry if I worried you or something. I just had some things on--" Ryou was cut off by something he heard Yumi murmur.

"Why did you ask me if I had ever fallen in love before?" Yumi said quietly. She then looked at Ryou she was blushing pretty badly and had a pretty defenseless look, the kind that you should only see in a sappy shoujo mangas. Needless to say, Ryou was totally unprepared for Yumi's sudden adorableness; you'd want to take her home ()!

"Oh…that…" Ryou had a sad smile when he remembered blurting that out to Yumi while having to claw through his old memories. He looked at Yumi again but had to glance away quickly since Yumi still had her 'Tragic shoujo-manga heroine face lvl.3 activated' and he really didn't feel like blushing like crazy as well, especially in front of Yumi of all people.

"I just…started remembering some things from the past, I really wasn't thinking when I asked you that. You can just disregard that question if you want." Ryou said before trying to laugh it off.

"The past?" Yumi asked, finally managing to regain her composure and disengaging her her 'Tragic shoujo-manga heroine face lvl.3'.

"Yeah…for some reason, I was starting to remember some bits of the past that I thought I had locked up." He then looked down on the ground and started to gently swing. Yumi didn't have a follow up to that. She knew that she needed to choose her words carefully since it seemed to be a pretty sensitive issue. When she found no words to say, she just remained silent, the only sound that could be heard was the swing.

"There was once a girl who had long beautiful red hair; she had deep brown eyes that held a sort of mystery to them. She was an enigma, someone that you would have a heck of a time figuring out. And when you did, it was only because she wanted you to. This girl once helped a boy who got into a fight because he wanted to get something very important back that was taken away. That was the first time the two of them met, neither of them realizing that they would take a major role in each others lives…" Ryou said. Yumi simply listened to Ryou as the young man continued the story.

...

It had been a week after that incident with the delinquents. Ryou had to take all seven days off from school because of his injuries. His mom nearly lost it when he went home looking like he had a fight with a typhoon, and subsequently lost. During the time that he was recovering, all Ryou could think about was that red haired girl that gave him first aid.

"Now that I think about it…how did she get me to the bench at the park? And where did she get that first aid kit? And how did she know where I was when all of that happened in the first place?" Ryou lay silent on his bed waiting for answers that he knew wouldn't come. All he could do was wait to recover and ask her personally.

"Sawatari Haruna-san…I wonder why she helped me…" Ryou said to himself before going downstairs for something to eat.

...

When Ryou finally managed to go to school, the reception he got was somewhat not what he was expecting. He had originally imagined a heartfelt reunion with his classmates who were worried about him for missing school for a week. What he got when he was walking to school however was…

'It's him!' He heard one student whisper to her companions.

'Yeah! I heard that he picked a fight with a bunch of gang members.' Another student said.

'Scary! I didn't think that he was this violent!' A timid voice said.

'Yeah, as expected of the _Terror of Death_!' He heard another student say.

_The what?_ Ryou stopped in wonderment of what a student just referred to him as. He looked at the students questioningly and they all thought that he was glaring at them and all ran away.

"What did that guy just call me?" Ryou wondered while walking the rest of the way to his Middle School. Everyone that he had come across had kept a pretty good distance away from him. Ryou just shrugged at being treated that way when he was still a bit injured.

When he got to the school gates, it was more of the same treatment from his schoolmates. Everyone was giving him cautious looks and whispered among themselves. He looked around at them and they all looked away from him and started shuffling towards the school building but keeping a very generous distance away from him.

_What the hell is happening?!_ Ryou thought. He was really starting to get miffed at all of this and decided to get some answers. Surely his classmates, his comrades for the past three years will give his some straight answers without freaking right? RIGHT!?

The difference between perception and reality can be scary sometimes…

The second that Ryou opened the door, the usually noisy class 3-C became silent…dead silent. The temperature in the entire room then dropped a few degrees as Ryou stepped in.

"Eh?" Ryou muttered as he walked into the room. There was a very heavy atmosphere in the room as his classmates tried to ignore him as best as they could. Ryou got to his seat, it was the second to the last seat nearest to the window facing the hall. He looked at his seatmate and old friend, a boy named Akizuki Kotaro. He was the only person in school that has Ryou's absolute trust and Ryou had his as well. As it stands, Kotaro was the only person in the class that wasn't freaking out and avoiding Ryou. Koji was a tall kid, a full head over Ryou, kinda like how Kanako is to Yumi. He was pretty well built and his eyes were always looking like they were glaring, which gave him the feel of a pretty intimidating person. In truth, Kotaro was far from what his appearance suggests. He was actually a pretty gentle guy, relatively speaking. He can most certainly defend himself if need be but he usually avoids fights if he could. He had a slightly moppy hairstyle and wore glasses since he was short sighted. He and Ryou had been friends since they were kids, they were neighbors all their lives. The fifteen your old sat down and looked like he had already had a hard day, he looked at his friend who just shrugged.

"I'd think that you'd want an explanation on what's been happening eh? _Terror of Death_?" Kotaro said with a sly smile. Ryou gave his closest friend a flat stare at the last part of his question.

"Yeah, I would. Starting with what the hell _Terror of Death_ IS!" Ryou said with a bit more force. Kotaro adjusted his glasses for a moment to get his composure back from his friend's sudden outburst.

"That is the nickname that the members of the gang you wasted gave you. It pretty much spread through the schools like the plague afterwards. They say that you got up and walked away from the fight without even limping." Kotaro said with an obviously speculative tone. He knew that Ryou usually had a cool head but when he blew his top he could be pretty fearsome but he never really believed that he could just walk away from a fight against a bunch of Highschool Delinquents even on the off chance that he COULD win.

"The hell is that supposed to mean? And what do they mean WALKED AWAY. I was out cold after all that and when I can to, I was on a bench in a park." Ryou said in rising frustration.

"Park? How did you get all the way to a park if you were supposed to be unconscious?" Kotaro asked the painfully obvious question. Ryou shook his head while trying to recall what happened.

"All I remember was waking up in the park and then…" Ryou trailed off and then his eyes widened at where his statement was heading. He then leaned in close to his friend.

"I was helped by a weird girl named Sawatari Haruna…I think she was the one who got me to the park. She even applied first aid on me." Ryou explained and there was silence between them afterwards.

"That…" Kotaro said while adjusting his glasses.

"Makes less sense doesn't it?" Ryou finished the sentence before sighing. True, what happened was too retarded to be coincidence. Haruna needed to be walking by at the right place, at the right time to witness the end of the fight. She also managed to figure out that Ryou was the real victim in all that and she had to have the strength to drag him all the way to the park without anyone noticing and finally to find a first aid kit rather quickly. It had gone far too well.

"Are you sure that you didn't just dream all of that up? You were pretty badly beaten up you know." Kotaro reasoned.

"That doesn't make any sense either. If I really DID dream all of that up then how did I get bandaged up?" Ryou countered. Indeed, this whole thing had too many questions.

"Wait! That girl that helped me! She was at least wearing the girl's uniform of our school and said her name was Sawatari Haruna. You heard anything about that name?" Ryou asked. That name was pretty much the only lead that they had at the moment to solve the odd mystery.

"True…I have heard a girl named Sawatari in our year before, but I'm not sure about her first name though." Kotaro said.

"Well, at least it's something…I wanna know exactly what she was doing there at that time and how she got to me…" Ryou said with a slight conviction in his voice. Kotaro felt a sweat drop at his words.

"If she DOES exist and DID do all those things that you said, you want to interrogate her instead of thanking her?" Kotaro was pointing out that Ryou may have his priorities mixed up, his friend blinked a few times at that notion.

"Oh…don't worry about that. I already thanked her before we parted ways so I can pretty much interrogate her this time." Ryou plainly said, Kotaro nearly hit him with his desk for saying that.

...

"Your friend didn't believe that Sawatari-san helped you?" Yumi asked as she too started to swing a bit, Ryou nodded.

"Think about it…the whole thing was just way too good to be coincidence." Ryou reasoned the way Kotaro did.

"But what if it was fate or something?" Yumi asked with shimmering eyes, Ryou stopped swinging when she said that.

"Fate…huh…?" Ryou mused before continuing the story.

...

"Maybe it was fate?" Kotaro joked while walking with Ryou out of the classroom. It was lunch and Ryou wanted to get some answers as soon as he could but there was a bit of a problem.

"There are five classes in our year but we can pretty much eliminate our own for this, then there is also a possibility that the Sawatari in our year is not the same Sawatari that you met. That being said, we also have to deal with five classes from the first and second years in this school as well. This is turning into a pretty big headache you know…Ryou?" Kotaro looked at Ryou when he didn't respond to what he just said. At first he thought that it had finally dawned on Ryou that something like this would be pretty difficult to accomplish with just the two of them, and one of them is still recovering from injuries, then he saw that Ryou was looking outside towards the roof. He followed his gaze and saw that he was staring at a girl who was there. She was right up against the protective steel mesh that prevented anyone up there from accidentally falling to their doom and she was looking straight at Ryou. Kotaro put two and two together and…

"Wait…Don't tell me…" Kotaro got his answer when Ryou suddenly ran off, presumably towards the roof. The tall boy pushed up his glasses and swallowed.

"This is way too convenient…Fate…I guess…" He said before walking off to get something to eat, it WAS lunch time after all.

...

The door to the roof slammed open with Ryou emerging from it panting like he was currently running away from a horde of flesh eating zombies, which was not the case of course. When he managed to catch his breath, Ryou looked around to see where Haruna was but she was nowhere to be found.

"No way…this time even Kotaro saw her! Did she run away?" He said to no one in particular, but he still got an answer though when he got hit on the back of the head with a thermos bottle…that was still half-full. Ryou hunched over in pain at the sudden concussion and saw what had hit him. After he had recovered somewhat, he walked over to where the thermos ended up and picked it up.

"What is this?" He asked while holding the back of his head in his other hand.

"It's Barley Tea and I would like to finish it if you don't mind." A chillingly cold and familiar voice said from behind him. He looked to the direction where that voice was coming from. Sure enough, there she was, standing on the concrete roof of the door where Ryou just came out of, looking down on him both literally and figuratively.

"Sawatari…Haruna…" Ryou muttered, the girl above him nodded. Ryou gritted his teeth while holding up the thermos.

"Why the hell did you throw a thermos at me?!" Ryou yelled.

"Because you said that I might have run away from you, I run from no one." Haruna coldly stated. Ryou didn't have a comeback for that due to the bluntness of her words and the childishness of her actions.

"You don't want anyone to say that you run from anything…so you threw a THERMOS at the back of my head?! What if I had been knocked out?!" Ryou yelled again while holding up both his arms like he was asking Maria-sama what is wrong with this girl.

"Well, you are still conscious are you not? So climb up here and return my thermos, I will allow you to share some of my lunch as an apology for throwing a blunt object at you." Haruna said before disappearing from sight.

"That girl…" Ryou muttered before climbing up, he needed some answers from her and he might as well get something to eat out of it as well. He climbed up the ladder to where Haruna was. He saw that she had a large blue pattered blanket laid out and he saw that she had various sandwiches laid out and there was even a straw basket nearby, Haruna herself was sitting on the blanket and waiting for Ryou to give her back her thermos.

_Is she having a picnic?_ Ryou thought as he approached the odd setup the girl had. He handed her the thermos and sat down.

"Please help yourself; I hope you were not expecting me to feed you or anything Miyamoto Ryou-san." Haruna said matter-of-factly before opening her thermos to get more tea, Ryou looked at her like she just grew a third head.

"Of course not! That would be too reta—you remembered my name?" Ryou suddenly spat out. Haruna put down the thermos after getting some tea into a glass she had glared at Ryou while drinking some tea, she then cleared her throat after drinking some. Ryou was wondering why she acts like that.

"Of course I remember. Do you think that my short term memory is that bad? How rude!" She said while narrowing her eyes at Ryou and getting a sandwich.

_Rude? So says the girl who threw a thermos at me… _Ryou thought as he was reminded of the pain at the back of his head.

"Sorry, I was just surprised that you didn't just dismiss the whole thing about helping me out before." Ryou said to the strange girl. Said strange girl then handed him a sandwich.

"Don't think that I'm some emotionless ice queen. If I was, I would have just left you to rot that day." Haruna said with the tone OF an ice queen.

"I guess, how did you find and help me anyway?" Ryou asked before eating the sandwich, which was ham and melted cheese by the way.

"I was walking by just as you fell over and became unconscious. From the fact that you were wearing the uniform from this school and the other ones did not, I deducted that you faced all of them on your own and somehow managed to win...relatively speaking. I then looked around to find assistance but found none. The fact that there were no people around at the time was most likely the reason why you were taken there in the first place. In any case, I really had no choice but to get you out of there or else you might risk further injuries..." Haruna went on, describing in detail what she did to help Ryou. The young man was astonished at the fact that everything that he and Kotaro thought to be the factors that contributed to disproving Haruna from being the one who helped Ryou…was actually all true, the girl did it all...and she talked about it in such a nonchalant way as well. He just sat there, god smacked at what he had just heard. Haruna snatched away the sandwich that he was holding and ate it. He was finally snapped back to reality when he heard the bell ring that signaled the end of the lunch break. Ryou looked around to see that Haruna was almost done in fixing up her 'picnic basket'; she stared at him like she was waiting for Ryou to do something.

"Is there something on my face?" Ryou asked the red-head, the girl shook her head and picked up her basket.

"Nothing noteworthy, but I would like to have my blanket back." Haruna said while pointing at the blanket that Ryou was sitting on. The boy looked at the blue blanket and widened his eyes at the realization.

"Oh! Sorry!" Ryou stood up and folded the blanket himself as an apology. When they went down and were about to part ways, Haruna turned to Ryou and stared at him intently.

"I had no reason to help you but I did. I did not do it on the grounds that I would get something in return. I did it because I had the capacity to do so. That is all." And with that she walked off. Ryou really didn't have a chance to speak up but after getting some distance between them, Haruna turned around and gave Ryou a small smile.

"And you are welcome by the way. Thank you for accompanying me for lunch." She said before walking off to her class. Unbeknownst to Ryou, he already had a pretty red tinge on his cheeks and it was doubtful that he noticed it but someone else did.

"Did you see something you shouldn't have?" A familiar voice said from behind him. Ryou turned around and saw his friend Kotaro who had a pretty sly smile while pushing up his glasses.

"Wha--" Ryou never finished his query since he got the answer when he saw his reflection from the window.

"Taking a liking to the most dangerous girl in school eh? You are more of a challenger than I had ever thought Ryou." Kotaro said while putting a hand on his shorter friend's shoulder.

"Dangerous?" Ryou was wondering what Kotaro had meant by that statement.

...

"Dangerous?" Yumi also wondered at what Ryou meant in his story.

"Yeah…Haruna, or more specifically, her family and upbringing was the reason why I don't really take well to snobs…also known as the 'higher society'…No offence to your Onee-sama. I know that not everyone of them is like that but still…" Ryou sighs after saying all that.

"Something happened didn't it?" Yumi pointed out the painfully obvious, Ryou simply nodded to confirm her suspicions.

...

Just some things to explain about this chapter:

**-Terror of Death** was taken from the .hack//G.U. games since I really like them. No real significance to the story other than it was the nickname Ryou had late in his junior high.

-**Akizuki Kotaro** the name of Ryou's best friend was taken from the Kamen Rider series 'Kamen Rider Black'. **Kotaro** is the given name of Kamen Rider Black himself and **Akizuki** is the last name of Kamen Rider Black's nemesis 'Shadow Moon' who is also his step-brother. Yes, I too am a Kamen Rider geek. It can be speculated that Kotaro's name is one of the reasons why Ryou became his friend in the first place since Ryou is a Kamen Rider fan.

-**Sawatari Haruna** was loosely based from Sawatari Makoto of the Visual Novel/Anime/Manga **Kanon**. She was my favorite girl there and I BAWWWed at the end of her story arc. I naturally added some things to her personality to make her unique. Haruna is a pseudo-Tsundere since she really does not realize that she is being cold or antagonistic to other people, her upbringing had something to do with that just like Sachiko's.

-**Miyamoto Ryou**'s name was also based from .hack//G.U. he was named after Haseo's real name which is also Ryou, I added Miyamoto since it sounded nice. Other than the name, Ryou is his own person. He is very fiercely loyal towards his family and friends as shown in previous chapters.

Part 2 of Ryou's past will be done on the next chapter so look forward to it! In the meantime…HUZZAH!

Please R&R


	9. Chapter 9

**Author's Note: **This is the finale of Ryou's past nad I'll get back to the main plot in the next chapter. Please enjoy!

**Disclaimer: **I do not own anything on this fic that can be used against me in a court of law.

...

_The most dangerous girl in school…_

That was how Kotaro described Haruna, much to Ryou's bewilderment. When Ryou thought about it, the impression he had from Haruna was different. He really hadn't had much time to think about what he thought of her when they first met. When he did have time to think, it was pretty much all questions about her and nothing to base any profile of her with. That time on the roof was rather awkward as well; she threw a thermos at him after all. All-in-all, the only impressions he had with her is that she is aloof, indifferent, blunt, and she acts upon what she feels. Certainly, from that, one could say that she would be quite a volatile personality but saying that she was 'most dangerous' was pushing it a bit. It sure seemed that way to Ryou as he was walking to school the day after his odd reunion with Haruna. The young man sighed like he had a problem that was tantamount to the weight of the world on his shoulders.

_Because I was too busy wondering about what Kotaro said, I wasn't able to watch Kamen Rider Kabuto last night…_He sighed as he lamented over the missed chance to watch a man in armor resembling a beetle beat the snot out of monsters in overly dramatic fashion. His thoughts then went from his high jumping, hard kicking helmeted hero to the reason he missed the episode in the first place.

_I wonder if I'll see her again today…_He thought.

_And if I do…_

_I wonder if she'll throw anything at me…_He wondered while feeling the bump at the back of his head. While he was walking, he once again noticed that his fellow schoolmates were avoiding him and were giving him weary glances.

"Not this again!" Ryou said out loud, a little too loud as the distance made by his schoolmates increased even more. Ryou grumbled and marched on. When he got to the school gates, he was greeted with a sight that could either be considered a blessing from the angels or a sick joke of demons.

"Cutting it close are you not Ryou-kun?" Haruna said in her usual uncaring tone. Ryou could feel his eyebrow twitching when he saw the redhead waiting for him in front of the school gate.

_Ryou…kun?_ He wondered at the sudden way Haruna called out his name with familiarity. He shook his head to get rid of the subject since he had other things to worry about such as…

"What are you doing here?" Ryou asked the hazel-eyed girl. Said girl just gave him a bored look and leaned closer to Ryou until their faces were an inch apart. It was only then that Ryou had noticed that she was a bit taller than he was, though it could probably be attributed to her hair.

"I was waiting for you to arrive…couldn't you even comprehend something like that since I was standing here and only paid notice to you?" Haruna asked the rhetorical question.

"Okay…so why were you waiting for me?" Ryou asked while walking into the campus grounds, Haruna in tow. Haruna said nothing until they got to the shoe lockers.

"Yes, I was waiting for you. Was that not obvious?" Haruna asked before opening her shoe locker, Ryou's was on the opposite side.

"Yeah but why were you--" Ryou's follow up was interrupted with the sound of paper falling from a height. Ryou looked behind him and saw that when Haruna opened her shoe locker, several envelopes fell from it. The girl then sighed sharply and kicked away the envelopes from her feet. Ryou picked one of them up after changing into his indoor shoes, looking at the odd object he saw that it was addressed to 'Sawatari Haruna-sama'.

_Sama?_ Ryou wondered at the odd honorifics until he realized what the letters probably were.

"Love…letter?" He said while staring at the envelope, it was snatched away from his hand.

"This is no Love Letter. It is merely a blatant and pathetic attempt to get my attention." Haruna proceeded to tear the letter in her hands and let it drop unceremoniously on the floor. Other students passing by or getting their own indoor shoes were staring at Haruna's display. The girl in question was either oblivious or simply ignored the looks she was getting and started to walk away. When she noticed that Ryou did not follow, she looked back to where he was and found him picking up the letters off the ground.

"What are you doing?" Haruna asked while walking back to Ryou.

"Baking a cake…" The young man sarcastically said, he stood up and handed Haruna the remaining letters. The redhead gave him a bored look and cocked a brow.

"Some of these may be just a pile of BS, I won't deny that. But you can't deny the possibility that one of them really DID pour their heart and soul into their letter for you." Ryou said in all seriousness, his black eyes locked squarely onto Haruna's brown eyes, neither of them willing to back down. The standoff went on until the bell rang signaling the start of the class. Haruna closed her eyes and turned her back to Ryou but did not walk away.

"I cannot…I WILL not acknowledge the feelings of someone who can't even tell it to my face. Such a method is insulting." Haruna said while crumpling up the letters in her hand, she walked off after saying her peace. Ryou could only stand there, he could understand her reasoning but…

_Why is she that bothered by it? And why am I this bothered by her reaction?_

...

"What are those?" Kotaro asked, pointing to the envelopes that his friend was holding. Ryou put the letters on his desk and sat down with a heavy sigh.

"Love letters…" Ryou said without looking at his friend. He had thought that Kotaro would make a big fuss about it but he was surprised that his friend did not say anything. When he looked at his friend, he got the reason why.

_He's frozen on the spot…_Ryou thought since Kotaro was pushing up his glasses while his mouth was opened wide. Ryou waved his hand in the face of his friend to get some kind of response but still Kotaro was frozen.

"They are from guys you know…" Ryou said just to see if he would get a reaction. He did but all it was is Kotaro becoming paler, his expression remained the same. Ryou sighed…

"They weren't for me you idiot. They were for Sawatari." Ryou said before giving Kotaro a gentle karate chop on the head, finally snapping the taller boy back to reality.

"Wait…why do you have love letters that were supposed to be for her? Jealousy?" That earned him another karate chop, this time a bit stronger. Kotaro rubbed his head and saw that Ryou was glaring at him.

"Bullseye?" Kotaro jested.

"Total miss…" Ryou rebuked.

"The reason why I have these is because Sawatari tried to throw them all away without even reading them. She said that she won't entertain things like that since they didn't have the guts to tell her in person." He continued, to which Kotaro simply blinked a few times to.

"That…was the reason? Why would you even care about that?" Kotaro asked.

"I don't know…I just thought that it might be a waste…you know..." Ryou said, his tone becoming a bit unsure.

"That…is not like you…for one thing, those guys who sent those should already know what they're getting themselves into and they should already know that there is a good chance that they will be rejected. So I don't really see any reason to bail them out, the hell is wrong with you?" Kotaro said after seeing how out of character Ryou was about this. Sure he helps people but not to the point of taking pity to lovelorn adolescent males.

"Well whatever…not like I can change her mind about these…I'll give them a decent cremation later. In any case, could you tell me what happened in Kabuto last night?. I wasn't able to watch." Ryou said, again he saw his friend frozen in place. He was about to hit him again when Kotaro suddenly stood up with a terrified expression.

"YOU MISSED AN EPISODE OF A KAMEN RIDER SHOW?!" Kotaro yelled out loud enough for the whole class to hear. Ryou suddenly noticed that everyone went silent at Kotaro's words, Ryou thought it was just shock from his friend's outbu—

"HOLY FREAKING CRAP! MIYAMOTO MISSED A KAMEN RIDER EPISODE!!!!" One of his classmates yelled.

"eh?" Ryou said, dumbstruck.

"Oh no! The world is about to end! Save the children! Someone save the children!!!" One of his other classmates wailed.

"I hate you all…" Ryou said while his class continued to proclaim the Armageddon due to him not being able to watch Kamen Rider Kabuto last night.

...

Ryou looked at Yumi to see what her reaction was to that event and he pretty much got what he expected. The Rosa Chinensis En Bouton looked like she just saw Sei and Youko doing the nasty on the table in the Rose Mansion meeting room.

"Yes…I was, and still am known as a fierce Kamen Rider fan." Ryou said while pointing at his shirt, it was red with a black 'S' on it that is pointed at the ends.

"This is a replica of the shirt worn by Jyo Shigeru. He was Kamen Rider Stronger, my favorite first generation Rider. I managed to score it back in Rider-con last year as well as a bunch of other nice stuff." Ryou said with a hint of adoration.

"I'm not sure about everything you said but it's kinda amazing…I think…sorry…" Yumi lowered her head apologetically for not understanding what Ryou said. She heard him snicker a bit and felt his hand on her head. She looked up and saw him smiling warmly at her.

"I don't really mind that you don't understand anything I just said. That's a given considering how deep of a fan I am and the fact that you probably haven't watched an episode of any Kamen Rider show in your life so don't beat yourself up over every little thing. It's cute but not a good habit to keep." Ryou said while patting Yumi's head. The rose did not dislike the action and let him do it for a few moments. She opened her eyes when she felt Ryou stop, she looked at him and saw that he was blushing. Ryou had just realized what he had been doing and was embarrassed in doing so. He pulled back his hand looked away. His reaction made Yumi a bit uncomfortable as well and she started blushing as well. Ryou coughed to get some composure back and get Yumi's attention.

"Anyway…back to the story…"

...

"That takes care of that…" Ryou said while watching the love letters burn in the school furnace. Kotaro had something to take care of so Ryou had to do this on his own. After he had finished the funeral of the hopes for romance of several of his schoolmates, Ryou decided to eat his bentou. He found himself drawn to the roof, the reason why evaded him. When he got there, he found Haruna eating there by herself. She turned to him and blinked a few times, her chopsticks still in her mouth. She put down her chopsticks and looked at Ryou intently.

"Are you stalking me Ryou-kun?" Haruna said flatly, the faintest hint of pink in her cheeks, though Ryou was too far away to notice. Ryou was taken aback by her assumption but just squinted.

"Like hell I am! There are just too many people in the cafeteria so I went here to eat." Ryou lied. He hadn't even gone to the cafeteria yet. Haruna hummed in acknowledgement and continued eating. Ryou walked over to her and sat down across from her.

"Mind if I join you?" Ryou said casually.

"Are you sure you are not stalking me?" Haruna asked again.

"I'm sure! If you don't want me around then just say so." Ryou said before staring to stand back up.

"No…wait!" Haruna called out, Ryou looked at her.

"I apologize…I did not mean to insult you. You may join me if you wish." Haruna said in a bit of a subdued voice, Ryou had no complaints about it and sat back down. Ryou was obliterating his tonkatsu when he noticed what Haruna was eating. The contents of her bentou were pretty standard: eggrolls, hotdogs, rice, but what struck him was how it was displayed. It was fixed up like something you'd see in a high class restaurant, Ryou could've sworn that he could see the rice sparkle. Haruna saw him and wondered why he was staring at her bentou.

"Would you like some?" Haruna said, snapping Ryou from his thoughts.

"Wha? Oh! No thanks, I was just wondering if your mom went overboard with the presentation of the food." Ryou said while giving a weak laugh. Haruna shook her head and sighed.

"No…one of our chefs made this for me. I told him to make it as simple as possible but I guess 'simple' for a four star chef is still not simple enough and my mother cannot cook her way out of a wet paper bag." Haruna said in a slightly cheerful tone.

"I'm not even sure you CAN cook your way out of a wet paper ba—WAIT! CHEF?! Four Stars?!" Ryou said in utter surprise. Haruna sighed at his reaction.

_Here we go again…he will now start to fawn over me since I am rich and that will lead to him asking for—_Haruna thought bitterly before she noticed that Ryou snatched away an eggroll from her bentou and ate it. Haruna was bewildered at Ryou's action as he closed his eyes while he chewed the eggroll. He looked up for a while as if considering the taste of what he just ate.

"This doesn't taste any different from any eggroll I've eaten before. What a rip…well, I guess it's too simple a recipe to be able to get anything different out of it. Maybe that's why the chef thought that he could just make it up with presentation…" Ryou trailed off, nodding to himself.

_He's upset that the food didn't taste different? Does he not care that it was prepared by a four star chef? Is this person an idiot?_ Haruna thought while glaring at Ryou.

"What?! I wanted to try out an eggroll made by a four star chef! You can have one of mine if you want." Ryou said while handing Haruna his bentou. The girl took one of the eggrolls that Ryou had and ate it.

"Well, happy now?" Ryou said before continuing on eating his bentou. He was interrupted when he heard Haruna giggle. He had to do a double take to make sure that it was indeed the girl sitting in front of him that just giggled. Haruna looked at her bentou and sighed.

"Indeed, it really does not taste any different." Haruna said in a playful tone. Ryou blinked a few times at what just happened.

"You. Just. Laughed?" Ryou said in disbelief. Haruna pouted at what he said.

"Did you believe that I was not capable of doing so? That is rather rude of you Ryou-kun." Haruna said a bit embarrassed.

"Yeah…about that, Why did you suddenly refer to me so…familiarly? This is only like, the fourth time we've met and you already call me by my first name." Ryou asked the girl, who frowned at him and made him feel like he shouldn't have asked.

"Is that any way to speak to someone who saved you from rotting away after you were beaten to a pulp? I had thought that I had earned the right to call you that way because of that." Haruna reasoned.

"I'm not saying that! I was just surprised, that's all! And I was curious why you suddenly started calling me 'Ryou-kun' out of the blue." Ryou countered, Haruna sighed.

"True, it was a bit sudden…but I wasn't really sure on how to talk to you after that. I did yell at you when we parted before." Haruna said meekly, she was poking her food when she recalled that event.

"_I didn't ask for your name!"_

"Oh yeah…" Ryou agreed when he remembered. He looked at the redhead and saw that she had her head down.

"Hey! C'mon! No need to be depressed about it. I don't really mind…" Ryou said, he suddenly felt like he was bullying Haruna or something. He put his bentou down and stood up. Haruna looked at him and he gave her a stupid grin.

"So let's start over then! My name is Ryou…Miyamoto Ryou, nice to meet you." Ryou said while holding out his hand. Haruna understood what he was trying to do and stood up and took Ryou hand.

"A pleasure to meet you Miyamoto Ryou-san. I am Haruna…Sawatari Haruna, I hope we can get along." Haruna said with a warm smile and the two of them shook hands. The two of them sat back down and continued eating.

"Umm…" Haruna hesitantly started.

"Yeah?" Ryou urged Haruna to say what she wanted to.

"Can I still…call you Ryou-kun" Haruna asked, unsure of Ryou's answer answer.

"Oh sure…I don't mind." Ryou said, waving it off with his chopsticks.

"Oh…alright then…" Haruna quietly said before continuing on eating her bentou.

"Umm…" This time, it was Ryou who was hesitant.

"Yeah?" Role reversal!

"Do I…have to call you Haruna…chan or something?" Ryou shyly said. Haruna almost choked on her food when Ryou said that. Both of them stayed silent for a while after that.

"If…you want to…I don't mind." Haruna replied.

"Nah…That would be waaaay to embarrassing for the both of us. And I don't want anyone getting the wrong idea about us either. I think I'll just stick to Haruna-san." Ryou rebuked without hesitation. He then saw Haruna give him a flat stare and suddenly give off a pretty strong amount of killing intent.

"What?" Ryou said, oblivious to how insensitive his comment was to Haruna. The girl simply fixed up her things, stood up, and walked away leaving a bewildered Ryou in her wake.

...

"What can I say…I was young." Ryou said while giving an ironic smile. Yumi just gave a weak laugh to humor him.

"So you and Sawatari-san fell in love after that?" Yumi casually said. The question caught Ryou off guard and he looked at Yumi before casting his eyes down on the ground.

"Like I said…I was young…back then I hadn't thought of Haruna-san like that. The days rolled on by and the two of us became pretty close friends. After a few weeks, I found out that Kotaro got a girlfriend, which is why he kept disappearing on me before saying that he had something important to do. I'm amazed he managed to keep it from me the whole time." Ryou mused.

"Really? What was the girl like?" Yumi asked. Ryou thought about it for a moment.

"Well her name is Aizawa Reimu. She was a year below us so I didn't really notice her before. It seemed like the two of them met during our school festival the year before and slowly developed from there. I couldn't believe that something important like that went under my nose. I guess that Kotaro wanted to get that girl on his own. The two of them are still together to this day. If I had to compare her to someone I'd have to say she's somewhere between Shimazu-san and Todou-san." Ryou explained.

"Eh?" Yumi struggled with thinking up a girl who would fit that. She was starting to have those imaginary spirals for eyes when Ryou decided to save her the trouble.

"Believe me, it'll make sense if you ever meet her." Ryou assured her.

"That's great…I'm happy for them." Yumi expressed her joy for Ryou's best friend and relief on not having to imagine a girl who was like both Yoshino AND Shimako.

"Yep…" Ryou trailed off.

"Ryou-san?" Yumi called out after Ryou's tone changed yet again.

"The Gekkoukan Junior High Cultural festival. Always been a pretty eventful time for everyone…That was when things between Haruna and I changed." Ryou said with a thoughtful smile.

...

"A what?" Ryou asked in utter confusion. He, Kotaro and Reimu were currently outside the school which had just opened for the public for the cultural festival.

"A maid café! Me-I-Do!" Reimu emphasized on the 'Maid' part while clinging onto Kotaro's arm. Reimu was much shorter than Kotaro and she could easily hide behind him and you would have no idea that she was there. She had long black hair that reached her back and she had ribbons tied to some of it on the right side of her head. She had soft brown eyes, was petite but expressive to her thoughts and feelings and was generally more of a simple cutie than a straight out MOE-blob.

"So? What does that have to do with anything?" Ryou wondered. They were walking through the several food stalls that were lined up just past the entrance of the school. Kotaro and Reimu were making a beeline to the school building when they noticed that Ryou was nowhere to be seen. They looked around and saw that he was in front of the Takoyaki store and was conversing with the attendant before being handed an order of, obviously, takoyaki. Kotaro tapped his friend to get his attention.

"What are you doing?" Kotaro asked. Ryou took a bite out off a takoyaki and looked at the couple.

"Saving the world before bedtime…" Ryou sarcastically said before eating the rest of the takoyaki.

"Very funny…C'mon, we need to hurry before the Maid Café becomes full." Kotaro said while looking to the direction of the school building.

"I didn't know that you liked that kind of stuff…better be careful or else Aizawa-san might dump you for being creepy." Ryou told his friend and subsequently got punched on the shoulder for it.

"The hell was that for?!" Ryou said, glaring at his taller friend. The answer he got was Reimu punching him on the shoulder as well. Ryou glared at her too but knew better than to do anything more.

"Like I'd break up with Kota-kun over something as stupid as that! We want to go there so badly because Sawatari-sempai's class is the one that's doing the Maid Café!" Reimu said much to Ryou's surprise.

_Haruna-san…in a maid outfit—WAIT!_ Ryou stopped his brain from going down that path.

"How come I never heard of this?" Ryou asked his friends.

"Because Sawatari-sempai didn't want you to know about it. She said that she was too embarrassed to have you know." Reimu answered. Ryou tilted his head after finishing off his food, wondering about what he had just found out.

"Why? She's not the kind of person who usually cares about what other people think so why'd she say that she'd be embarrassed?" Ryou asked again. He got a look of disbelief from his friends.

_This guy...is denser than lead!_ Kotaro and Reimu thought.

"Let's just go…" Kotaro said.

...

"Wow…" Ryou was surprised at the sheer number of people in front of class 3-A's room, Haruna's class. Even at eight in the morning, there was already a sizable line in front of the Maid Café. Looks like the concept of a bunch of Junior High girls dressing up as maids, serving coffee and calling you _Master_ is pretty appealing.

"How're we going to get in? At this rate, it'll be afternoon before we make it in." Ryou complained.

"Don't worry, that's what THIS is for!" Reimu then flashed a card in front of Ryou.

"And that is…" Ryou trailed off.

"A special pass to reserved seats. Reimu had asked them from the class rep of 3-A because they were in the same club." Kotaro answered. The class rep and Reimu were both in the gardening club so she had some leverage.

"Even so…reserved seating?!" Ryou was rather amazed at the oddity of the whole thing.

"Who cares about the details, it's free seating for four!" Reimu retorted, the two friends just shrugged. They cut their way to the very front of the line and saw that the class rep was the one managing the front of the café. Reimu waved to her Maid Uniform-clad friend.

"Marisa-sempai!" Reimu called. The class rep of 3-A, Yukishiro Marisa returned the gesture to her junior. She had short black hair that didn't even reach her neck but it was neatly kept that it prevented her from looking boyish. She had clear black eyes that showed determination but also showed understanding and a sense of mischief. She was just as tall as Reimu but still managed to keep all the guys in her class in check. She is expected to become a formidable student council president in high school. Ryou and Kotaro looked at Marisa and saw that the maid outfits were pretty standard English Industrial Revolution type maid uniforms and not the overly frilly French Maid look. Where they got those maid outfits from, who knows…

"At least they're not wearing short skirts and sleeveless tops…" Ryou commented.

"That would get someone arrested…" Kotaro reasoned and his friend nodded. Reimu chatted with her senior for a bit then gave her the pass card.

"Understood young mistress, right this way to your special seats..." Marisa said, going back in-character. Another female classmate of hers took over in the entrance. The four of them went inside and saw the full extent of class 3-A's Trump Card. Maids! A good couple dozen of them! If you are wondering where the male population of the class, they were in the home economics room cooking up for the menu of the café…though the menu only really consisted of four simple cakes and assorted types of tea and coffee that the girls themselves make but they needed all the guys there to make sure nobody screws anything up. Thankfully, it wasn't a _blind leading the blind_ situation. Anyway, Reimu looked around and almost missed seeing Haruna serving some coffee. She really didn't look like herself because of the maid uniform and since her hair was tied up into a bun.

"Sawatari-sempai!" Reimu called out, Haruna turned and two welcomed sights and one that she had never wanted to see while she was in this state. Ryou and Kotaro were amazed at how Haruna still maintained her usual air of refinement and superiority even while wearing a maid outfit that was supposed to represent servitude. When Haruna looked at Ryou in the eyes her world suddenly started spiraling out of control.

_Why is he here?_

_He's not supposed to be here…_

_He's not supposed to know that I'm here…_

_He said that wasn't even supposed to come to the school festival today…_

_So…why…?_

The answer never really came to her because her vision started to go dark and…

"Haruna!" Ryou yelled out as the sound of shattering porcelain filled the room followed by _Thud!_ Everyone there were in shock of what just happened to do anything, all except for two people.

"Kotaro! Clear me a path!" Ryou yelled out to his friend before lifting up Haruna in his arms. Kotaro nodded and gently pushed Reimu away from him and into Marisa.

"Please look after her Yukishiro-san." Kotaro asked, Marisa gave him a serious look and nodded. Reimu looked worried but understood what Kotaro will do, which was to barrel out of the room and clear a way for Ryou to get Haruna to the clinic. Reimu and Marisa looked on as they heard Kotaro yelling at people to get out of the way to let an injured person through. Thankfully, his calls were taken seriously as people gave them way as they passed.

"I wonder what happened to Sawatari-san…I hope she'll be alright…" Marisa said, everyone else in the room was still in shock of what happened. Reimu looked at her senior and smirked.

"Don't worry. Ryou-san would sooner get himself killed than see Sawatari-sempai suffer." Reimu declared, Marisa looked at her in surprise.

"I didn't know that those two were--"

"They're not…" Reimu muttered, her face gave away a look of irritation.

"What? But I thought tha--"

"They're both idiots…" Reimu muttered again, her apparent irritation growing even more.

"Oh…" was all Marisa said.

...

"Seto-sensei doesn't seem to be here…" Kotaro said while looking around for the school nurse. Ryou really didn't pay attention as he went straight to where the beds were and set Haruna down on the closest one. He put a hand on her head to make sure that she wasn't running a fever; he then noticed that Kotaro was beside him.

"How is she?" Kotaro asked the most obvious question. Ryou quietly nodded.

"She doesn't seem to be sick, she just seemed to have fainted. Then again, I'm not a doctor." Ryou said in a bitter sense of humor. Kotaro just sighed.

_Well, if he can pull a punch line like that, then I guess he's fine…_Kotaro thought.

"I guess you can handle it from here, just wait for Seto-sensei to get here just to be sure." Kotaro said before leaving Ryou's side, he was given a questioning look.

"I need to get back and tell them that Sawatari-san will be alright. I'm pretty sure that those two will be worrying their butts off up there." Kotaro said while pointing up to gesture where Marisa and Reimu were.

"Right…I'll keep Haruna-san company for a while then…" Ryou said before seeing his friend out of the Nurse's office. Ryou pulled the blanket of the bed over Haruna and took a seat on one of the stools in the office. He looked at her and wondered why she suddenly fizzled out like that, very uncharacteristic to the Haruna that he'd grown to know. Not knowing gave him a strange sting in his chest but he ignored it.

"Well, no use to mull over it…" Ryou said to himself while waiting for Haruna to wake up.

...

Kotaro finally got back up to the floor where the maid café was but as he turned to the hall, he almost bumped into a large man. Even with Kotaro's height, the man before him was still taller though not by a whole lot. What scared him were the eyes on the man. It showed iron-clad will, something that would not break no matter what. Every fiber in Kotaro's being told him to get away from this man or risk experiencing something very bad. Thankfully, Kotaro listened to his body and moved away. The man moved past him without even a passing glance, much to Kotaro's relief. He was a tall guy but he really wasn't violently inclined, even less so than Ryou who only snaps when his family or close friends were involved. He shrugged it off and headed straight to 3-A's classroom. When he got there, he found that the customers waiting in line outside were nowhere to be found. He opened the door and found Marisa sitting on the floor, grabbing onto Reimu for support. The rest of the people there looked like they just saw a public execution. Reimu looked at him and Kotaro was alarmed at her frightened expression.

"What happened?!" Kotaro called out while pulling Marisa up from the ground.

"He's here…he was looking for Sawatari-sempai…" Reimu said.

"Who?" Kotaro asked, to which Marisa gave a tired sigh of defeat before answering.

"Sawatari-san's father…"

...

This was the very first time that Ryou had seen Haruna sleeping. She looked nothing like she usually did. Granted that she was wearing a maid outfit and her hair was tied up to a bun, but her usual cold and indifferent expression was gone and was replaced with a serene look that he thought was impossible with this girl. But here she was, unconscious…then her hand started moving.

_Wait what?_ Ryou thought as Haruna opened her eyes and looked at her surroundings. She thought that she was safe…then she saw Ryou.

"Ryou-kun!" She yelped as she sat up, catching Ryou by surprise.

"He-hey! Take it easy! No one is gonna hurt you…" Ryou said in a soothing a voice as he could manage. Haruna looked around and saw that she was in the clinic.

"What happened…?" She asked.

"You passed out and worried the pants off us, that's what!" Ryou said in a slightly angry voice, Haruna flinched to this sudden outburst.

"Oh…sorry…" Ryou said, calming himself down. They just sat there in silence for what seemed like an eternity, though it was really just as few minutes. Ryou suddenly felt a really bad chill down his spine, like something was telling him to get ready for something big about to happen. He was wondering what that was when he heard the door of the clinic open.

"HARUNA!" A booming voice called out. Ryou was startled to say the least and he stood up straight, knocking down the stool he was sitting on. He looked at Haruna since she was the one being called out and he saw that she was practically pale as ice.

"Haruna-san! Haruna-san!" Ryou called out while shaking the girl's shoulders. He then felt a strong presence behind him that gave him the same chill down his spine that he had felt before. He turned around and saw the source of the voice.

"Father…" He heard Haruna mutter. Ryou looked at Haruna and then back at the large man in utter disbelief.

"Wait! What do you mean Fathe--" Ryou didn't get to finish as he was shoved out of the way by Haruna's dad and he was almost knocked to the ground. He managed to get his composure back and saw that the large man was forcefully trying to get Haruna to get out of the bed. When her father saw what she was wearing, he gave her a slap on the face.

"Haruna-san!" Ryou yelled out as he prepared to uncoil on Haruna's father.

"No!" Haruna yelled before Ryou could do anything else. Her father looked at him with eyes that reminded him of the time when he himself lost his sanity several months ago, only difference was that Haruna's father's was stronger and won't go away. Ryou was frozen on the spot with fear.

"Move from that spot and I will make sure that your entire family will suffer the consequences. This does not concern you." The large man clearly stated. Ryou thought it was some bad joke since he couldn't move even if he wanted to. Haruna's father then looked at her and squinted.

"Disgusting!" Was all he said before dragging Haruna away, she could not do anything to resist. Ryou wanted to move, he begged his body to move. But nothing happened; he was frozen on the spot for another few minutes. When he managed to get control back, he found that Haruna's father had already taken her away.

...

The days rolled on by but Haruna did not show up to class. Ryou and his friends tried to get in touch with her but she would not respond to anything. They tried to get the teachers to help but they were powerless, saying that Haruna was officially out of school due to 'Family Matters'. Weeks had passed and it was already December, still no Haruna. Ryou had gone back home when his mom handed him a letter saying that it was stuck in the mailbox for a few days now, she didn't check it so it was stuck there for so long. Ryou went up to his room and checked out the envelope. It was certainly addressed to him but did not have a return address. He really didn't think anything of it and just opened it. The contents made his heart skip a beat and shatter soon after. He ran out of the house immediately.

_I will be waiting to top of the hill overlooking the city…_

The train station was already closed, he cursed loudly and ran…

_I will be leaving the country with my family but before that I wanted to tell you something…_

He ran in the dark night, desperately trying to get to that place as soon as he could....

_I wanted to ask you something as well…_

He was heaving, his lungs and heart felt like they were about to collapse at any moment as he climbed up that hill…

_When I'm gone…_

He took the last steps up that hill and almost doubled over in pain…

_What would you do…?_

He walked around for any sign of that girl…

_Will you cry for me…?_

There was nothing…

_I will wait there until the very last second, until my father forcefully drags me away…I will wait…_

The letter was over a week old…

...

"Seven days…I missed her by seven days…Her dad forced her to move with him to Germany. Said that he didn't want his daughter exposed to such filth any longer…filth…heh…" Ryou said quietly. Yumi was at the verge of tears after that.

"Tha—that was so sad…" Yumi said between sniffles.

"Hey…don't be like that. No need to bawl your heart out like that." Ryou tried to comfort Yumi.

"But the two of you…you didn't even get to tell each other…" Yumi said between sniffles.

"Yeah…Haruna-san waited for me for so long…and I didn't even realize my own feelings until the moment when she was already out of reach from me…I was disgusted with myself." Ryou said bitterly but quickly shook his head seemingly trying to shake off the thought. He then stood up and took a deep breath.

"Ryou-san…" Yumi was concerned at Ryou having to remember all of that pain again.

"Thanks Yumi-san…for listening…" Ryou said while rubbing the back of his head.

"What?" Yumi was puzzled as to why Ryou was thanking her.

"I…needed that out of my chest. I've been remembering bits and pieces of it but I've been trying to suppress it. It ended up eating me from the inside." Ryou said with another sigh. He looked at Yumi, his usual expression coming back.

"I…see…Your welcome?" Yumi said in strange uncertainty, which earned her a soft snicker from Ryou.

"Don't you regret it?" Yumi said in a soft, concerned tone. Ryou stopped laughing and smiled.

"I'd be lying if I said I didn't…but there's nothing I can do about it now." Ryou said calmly.

"But…" Yumi was cut off when Ryou held up a hand to her.

"What's done is done…Haruna-san is gone but the memories we had and the feelings therein are still here. I'll never forget those days but I refuse to be ruled by the past. Haruna-san would smack me on the head with a baseball bat if I allowed that." Ryou said while helping Yumi stand up.

"To quote a movie I saw once..._Yesterday is history…Tomorrow is a mystery…but today is a gift, that's why it's called the present_." Ryou said with a big smile. Somehow, Yumi understood what he had meant and nodded.

"Now lets go, it's getting dark. I'll walk you home." Ryou offered.

"Okay…as long as you tell me what movie it was." Yumi said as she walked with Ryou.

"I think it was about a Koala that knew Kung-fu…"

"……………..What?"

...

Whew! That was huge! Anyway, please R&R!


	10. Chapter 10

**Author's Notes:** Well, here we are! Chapter 10! This chapter takes it's cue from the second chapter of Attraction&Repulsion but with more of Yumi and Ryou's POV. Please enjoy and bounce back any concerns about this style of writing.

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything on this fic that can be used against me in a court of law.**

...

After hearing about Ryou's past, and after watching that movie about that Martial arts Koala with Yoshino and Shimako which was rather enjoyable by the way, Yumi had come to realize that Touko and Kanako could possibly meet a similar fate or a worse one if they were just left alone. That being said, she does what she normally does in this situation.

"What's wrong Yumi? You look like the world just ended when you weren't looking?" Sachiko said to Yumi after their prayer to the Mary Statue. Yumi gave a signature 'Yumi' at Sachiko's jab at humor (it might sound out of character for Sachiko but I really CAN imagine her saying something like that canonically).

"Oh…nothing at all Onee-sama! I'm perfectly fine!" Yumi denied with gusto. But we all know how bad at lying Yumi is and Sachiko saw right through her little charade. She stopped walking and squinted at Yumi, which when we are talking about Sachiko means a stare that could bring even the mighty Heracles to his knees in fear (I might not be exaggerating either). Yumi gulped at her Grand Seour's reaction and saw that further ploys to throw her off may end very badly for her.

"I was just thinking about something that Ryou-san told me about recently…" Yumi trailed off. Sachiko's expression softened but still looked seriously at Yumi for an explanation.

"I'm sorry Onee-sama…but I can't tell you anything more. What Ryou-san told me is pretty personal to him and I would be betraying his trust if I told it to anyone else." Yumi said with as much confidence and conviction as she could muster though she was still fidgeting when she was saying that. Sachiko closed her eyes and gave a small sigh.

_So, it was concerning Miyamoto-san…_Sachiko thought a bit bitterly, she still has a natural dislike towards men except for Yuuki. She looked at Yumi again and saw her Soeur's resolve in the matter.

_If she's that convicted in not telling me then I guess I shouldn't pry any further._ Sachiko knew that Yumi almost never stands up to her outside of their occasional sisterly spats, so when she stood up like that to Sachiko then there must be a pretty good reason. Admit it, very few people would stand up to Sachiko in general anyway.

"It's alright Yumi. You don't need to tell me if you don't want to. We have other things to worry about anyway." Sachiko said going back to 'Rosa Chinensis mode' and started walking to the Rose Mansion for the morning meeting.

...

There was an awkward silence in the Yamayurikai meeting room at the moment. Sachiko had just announced the plan for the play to the Roses and the reactions were varying. Shimako had a surprised look, well, as surprised as Shimako gets. Noriko had a smile that said 'well played'. Rei had a bored expression that seemed to say that she expected something like this from her friend. Yoshino had a range of expressions from wonderment, to surprise, to the verge of bursting out in maniacal laughter. And Yumi? Well…

"Yumi? Are you listening? What's wrong?" Sachiko asked her Petit Seour, oblivious to the figurative thermonuclear explosive device that she had just laid onto the poor girl. If you've read 'Attraction&Repulsion' you already know what said figurative thermonuclear device is. But if you haven't, or just forgot, or haven't seen episode one OR two of the fourth season of Marimite then…

"Huh?" Yumi let out in reflex. Sachiko sighed at Yumi's apparent lack of attention to her words.

"You and Yuuki-san will need to switch roles in the play. Meaning you will be the brother and he will be the sister. Do you understand?" Sachiko said as clearly as she could. Yoshino was now covering her mouth with her hands just to prevent herself from cackling like a Hyena, to which Rei merely shook her head and sighed. Shimako and Noriko just looked at each other and gave wry smiles. Yumi just nodded and resigned to her fate.

"Good, please tell Yuuki-san that we will need the Hanadera Student Council to visit us sometime this week for the initial costume measurements and fittings." Sachiko told Yumi.

"Sure thing Onee-sama." Yumi replied with a forced smile towards Sachiko, probably trying to bury the eventual reality that will be set upon her and Yuuki for as long as she can.

"But it's pretty convenient to have members of both Student Councils as siblings. We don't even have to make calls to their school's administrative department just to set up meetings anymore." Rei said in gratitude. In the past, it would take days for either Student Council to try to get a meeting with the other school because of administrative protocol. But thanks to the coincidence that the Hanadera Student Council President and Rosa Chinensis En Bouton were brother and sister, they now have a direct link to each other and just casually set things up through each school's respective Fukuzawa.

"Indeed, it's been much easier to maintain an actual good relation between our schools instead of it just being something for the sake of tradition and face value." Sachiko mused. This got earned her some disbelieving looks from her fellow roses. The queen quickly became uncomfortable with those looks and glared at them as a result.

"Is there something wrong with what I said? If there is, speak up now…" Sachiko said, her confidence faltering for a moment. Everyone gave her varying looks from fear (Yumi) to amusement (Rei).

"It's not so much wrong as it is…surprising." Rei said, keeping her amused expression. The queen's brow twitched at her friend's comment, Yumi could feel the hostile intent from Sachiko starting to surface and that sent the poor girl to DEFCON Three.

"And how would that be surprising about that Rei?" Sachiko said, an imaginary vein popping on her forehead.

"Aside from saying something good about Hanadera and the willingness to work with them as opposed to last year when you couldn't even stand to hear the school's name mentioned? Nothing too important to mention…" Rei said nonchalantly with an Eriko-grade mischievous smile. Sachiko mumbled something inaudible and cleared her throat, one of the very few times that the queen had been caught with her pants down (figuratively speaking of course).

"In any case, we really won't be able to do much about the play until we get the response from Hanadera so there is no real use of worrying about it now is there?" Shimako said, breaking the tension in the room. The other two grand roses looked at her and back at each other. A moment of silence enveloped the room.

"Shimako-san is right…we have other things to take care of." Sachiko said and Rei nodded in agreement. Yumi was very thankful for Shimako's intervention. The youngest grand rose had been instrumental in balancing out the sometimes conflicting views of Rei and Sachiko. One can imagine that she will continue to do so in the coming days as well.

...

"Morisato-sempai will get mad at you, you know…" Ryou was telling the smaller girl in front of him that was currently messing around the open hood of the Motor Club's trademark three-wheeled racing car. The small blue two-seater, tri-axel, flatbed car has defied all odds on more than one occasion and has already achieved the level of school legend because of its exploits with the founder of the Motor Club as well as the current members. Said school legend was now being tinkered with by a girl who looked like she was no older than twelve and whose body was halfway into the engine compartment of the car. The girl is no other than the little sister of Urd and Belldandy, the tiny tech prodigy Skuld.

"Take it easy! I've done this before remember?!" Skuld's voice echoed from within the engine compartment while shaking her right arm, which was holding a wrench to show emphasis on her words, at Ryou who was standing beside the car with a worried look on his face. He was actually supposed to be the one to tune the engine and was already decked out in his coveralls when Skuld suddenly showed up and decided to, quote: "Not leave it to someone young and inexperienced."

"That exactly what worries me…" Ryou retorted. He knows very well that Skuld outclasses him in know-how and raw talent in technical things, much to his dismay. The problem comes from the fact that the girl tends to go overboard on everything she works on regardless on what it may be, Ryou is worried that this is also one of those times.

"Did you say something?!" Skuld yelled out again, not hearing what Ryou said. Ryou sighed and moved closer and looked into the engine compartment where Skuld was.

"I was asking if there anything I can do to help…" Ryou said dryly. Skuld looked up at him and suddenly, their faces were only an inch apart. Even though a good portion of Skuld's face is covered in grease, she still managed to reveal a healthy blush. Ryou just gave her a wondering look.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING YOU IDIOT?!" Skuld yelled out, swinging the wrench she had at Ryou. The young man was barely managing to dodge the fierce attack from the thoroughly embarrassed girl.

"Hey! Watch it!" Ryou yelled out as he continued his evasive maneuvers against Skuld. Luckily for him, Belldandy and Keiichi had just arrived to find Skuld trying to recreate an episode of Higurashi Season One with help from Ryou.

"Skuld! What are you doing?!" Keiichi yelled out when he saw what was happening, Belldandy just looked like she was a bit surprised but was not alarmed.

"Divine Punishment!" Skuld declared as she kept swinging at Ryou.

"For what?! I was trying to help!" Ryou had his back literally to the wall, of the clubhouse to be exact, as he didn't notice that he was forced to a corner. Skuld was about to let him have it when someone grabbed her right wrist which held the wrench. The little goddess looked at who grabbed her and saw that it was none other than Belldandy. The first class goddess gave her little sister a smile that could even beat the greatest one that Yumi could do and all of Skuld's killing intent seemingly evaporated at her sister's radiance.

"Onee-sama…" Skuld regarded her older sister.

"Skuld…please stop this. Ryou-san was only trying to help you correct?" Balldandy said in her usual gentle tone. Skuld lowered her hand and looked at Ryou. The young man had his arms crossed over his chest and he looked like he was expecting something, an apology is the most likely case. Skuld looked at him and grimaced, then looked at Belldandy pleadingly for help but all she got was a gentle smile and nothing more. Skuld knew what that smile meant and the young goddess looked down and sighed.

"…..rry." She muttered under her breath.

"Excuse me? What were you trying to say?" Ryou said sarcastically.

"……sorry…." Skuld said a bit louder but still only barely hearable, her face contorted in obvious discomfort of having to admit her fault.

"I can't heaaaaar yooouuuu…" Ryou kept on messing with Skuld.

"I said…" Skuld said with some force, her right hand tightened the grip on the wrench which she still held.

"I'm…." Ryou can sense her killing intent rising again like the flame of a growing bonfire.

_Uh-oh…_ Ryou immediately regretted pushing his luck.

"GOING TO KILL YOU!!!!" Skuld exploded with anger and chased Ryou around once again. Keiichi watched on helplessly as Skuld tried to reduce the Motor Clubs' members by one person in the bloodiest way possible.

"Shouldn't we stop them?" Keiichi asked his girlfriend, to which Belldandy shook her head.

"I wouldn't want to ruin their fun…" Belldandy said with a smile.

"Fun? Skuld is trying to destroy Ryou-san isn't she?" Keiichi said while pointing at the two.

"She may have said that, but they both look like they are having so much fun." Belldandy pointed out. Keiichi took a good look and sure enough, both Ryou and Skuld were smiling. Keiichi saw that it was like watching two children playing tag.

_If I'm starting to think like that then that means that I've become too used to this way of living._ Keiichi noted the bittersweet irony while Skuld and Ryou continued their game of 'tag'.

...

"And that is what has to happen…" Yumi said with a heavy heart as she explained Sachiko's plan for the play to Yuuki. The Fukuzawa family was having dinner at the moment and Yumi decided to spring the news to her brother and seemingly ruin his appetite.

_Gaaahh! I shouldn't have made that suggestion to her…_Yuuki thought of what he said to Sachiko a few days ago.

"Okay, I'll discuss this with the others on tomorrows meeting." Yuuki said while poking his food. The idea of playing as a girl in a play in front of a lot of people was starting to sink in. they then heard their mom giggling, probably at what the siblings were talking about.

"My…Sachiko-chan certainly has a very unique idea about this play." Mrs. Fukuzawa said. Their father merely grunted in acknowledgement while reading through some papers, most likely for his work. The siblings merely sighed at the reactions of their parents.

_I wonder how this will turn out? _Both of them thought.

...

"So this is what it boils down to huh?" Yumi mused as she was being fitted with her costume for the play along with the other members of the Yamayurikai and the addition of Kanako and Touko. The gentlemen of Hanadera were also there but were in a different room for privacy of course. Yumi was envious of the other girls since they get to wear kimonos and such while she had to dress up as a man and act like one as well.

_I wish there was some way to even up the odds…_Yumi silently wished. Sachiko then burst into the room with a glint in her eye. The Yamayurikai immediately felt a chill down their spine while the rest of the people in the room were wondering what was up.

"Stop the fittings as once!" Sachiko yelled out, her voice was firm but she was smiling.

"Why? We just started." One of the girls in charge of the costumes asked.

"I had a wonderful thought thanks to one of our friends from Hanadera, something that will make our play unique beyond all others." Sachiko declared.

"I have a bad feeling about this…" Rei muttered.

"What is it?" One of the other girls dared to ask, Sachiko nodded to the question.

"You all know that the Fukuzawa siblings will be switching roles for this play. Well, Alice-kun gave me the idea based on that." Sachiko started to explain.

"Now I really have a bad feeling about this." Rei said grimly. Yumi could also feel that something was about to happen and looked around. She saw Touko glancing at Kanako then to her. When Touko realized that Yumi was also looking at her, she immediately looked away, a tinge of red in her cheeks. Yumi smiled to herself at Touko's cute reaction and looked around to find who the drill-haired one was looking at before. Yumi looked around and quickly found the tall girl, who had a particularly sour look put on but Yumi wasn't sure why that was the case.

"Are you serious Rosa Chinensis?!" The voice of one of the members of the costume team snapped Yumi out of her thoughts. She looked around and saw several other girls sporting the same expression Kanako had but a bit less…unhappy.

"Huh? What's going on?" She tapped Shimako on her shoulder; the Wisteria Maiden just had a quizzical look to what was happening.

"Oh...Sachiko-sama just announced that everyone in the play will act in the opposite gender they are just like you and Yuuki-san." Shimako calmly explained.

'………………' Really, this was what was going through Yumi's mind after Shimako told her that. Yumi could hear some protests from the Costume Team after her declaration. They were reasoning that this was too sudden and too much of a radical change to what was usually done.

"And that is exactly the point. Please keep in mind that, unlike last year, the Drama Club will have a play ready for the School Festival and it would be rather upsetting if we just end up with a plain and mediocre play in comparison. I understand that most of us who will have to participate in the play have little to no experience in acting so what we lack in skill and experience, we must make up for in originality." Sachiko explained her reasons for doing this and it did make a whole lot of sense. The Lillian Drama Club, which Touko was a member of, has had a long history of plays that are almost on par with the professional plays done on a National Level and if the Yamayurikai/Hanadera combo did not come up with something to grab the audience with, they will just end up making the Drama Club look even better by comparison. Sachiko did not like that idea one bit. Everyone was silent after Sachiko's explanation; the thought of holding second fiddle to the Drama Club was not a very good prospect so most of them were starting to think that Sachiko could be on to something…most.

_That's all well and good…but that really didn't help me and Yuuki's situation._ Yumi thought in dismay.

...

A few days later, the Yamayurikai/Hanadera combo was back as the costume team pulled out a miracle and managed to resize the costumes for most of the actors for the play through sheer guts, hard work and tenacity so kudos to them for that. Because of this the remaining members of the costume team that could still move are now helping the Yamayurikai put on their costumes. The Hanadera Student Council had to help themselves with the fittings but did not have any real problems thanks to Alice. How the more feminine Student Council Member learned to properly put on a Kimono is probably better to remain unknown. Yumi was currently having a hard time adjusting to the tight costume that she had to use. The Hamaka looks loose but is actually wrapped quite tightly to the wearer, somewhat akin to a Victorian era corset and Yumi's face is solid evidence of it being so uncomfortable.

_I feel like I'm wearing a rug…I sure hope Yuuki is having better luck…_A lovely sentiment but Yumi should have realized what her brother was in for the moment she had mentioned the words _Role Swap_ during dinner days ago. Yumi suddenly heard a commotion followed by laughter in the room. She looked around and found a small crowd gathering around the door leading to the adjacent room where the Hanadera guys are in. Yumi quickly saw why everyone was laughing as the Elite Hanadera Student Council came into view.

The senior members of the Council Yakushiji Akimitsu and Tomomitsu (The twin towers of Hanadera) as well as Magane Takada (The big body builder) were just laughable as their frames were nowhere near designed to work well with a kimono so they were just an obvious target to be laughed at but the girls were not really looking at them. Yumi looked around a bit more and found Masamune Kobayashi (the one with the glasses). He really wasn't that bad looking nor was he good looking in a Kimono. Yumi really wasn't sure how to feel about that and she could only imagine what Kobayashi was feeling at the moment as well. The next one to come to view was none other than Kintarou Arisugawa, better known as Alice-kun. For a brief moment in time, Yumi suddenly felt a pang of jealousy when she saw Alice. If you were walking down the street and saw Alice in her—HIS kimono then you would not make a second guess that you were looking at a beautiful young woman…how wrong you would be. Though he lacks the natural curves of a female, Alice makes up for in sheer giddy cutesiness, but as stated before…It's a Trap!

"Wow Yumi-sama!" One of the girls in the crowd called out.

"You look absolutely wonderful in that outfit YUMI-SAMA!" Another girl cried out with glee, emphasizing Yumi's name.

_Huh? Me?_ Yumi pointed at herself when the girls saying how pretty 'Yumi-sama' is in her kimono. If you were paying attention, you should already know that Yumi was NOT wearing a kimono at the moment NOR was she anywhere near the door leading to the room where the Hanadera guys were, deductive reasoning…such a wonderful thing.

_Wait a minute!_ Yumi finally considered the worse case scenario and felt a cold sweat running down her neck at the thought. Her fears were realized when she saw who it really was the girls were complimenting…Yuuki. The poor young man was being ridiculed by Yumi's schoolmates for looking so much like Yumi with shorter hair.

"I'm really sorry about this Yuuki…" She whispered to herself, while Yumi was looking at the pitiful situation of her younger brother…

A loud stomp was suddenly heard from inside the room. Everyone fell silent at the loud noi—

"That is quite enough!!!" Yelled out the source of the loud stomp, which was none other than Hosokawa Kanako.

_Kanako-chan…_ Yumi was obviously surprised at the tall girl's sudden violent reaction. She looked at Touko and saw that the girl had a very worried expression, presumably for the taller girl. Yumi then noticed footsteps and saw that Sachiko was approaching Kanako but before the Grand Red Rose could confront her…

"I'm very sorry. Please excuse me." Barely heard Kanako before the girl left the room and slammed the door behind her. Yumi saw that Sachiko was none too happy about what Kanako just did and the last thing anyone needed right now was Sachiko and Kanako fighting so she approached her Onee-sama and gave her a knowing and determined look. Sachiko's expression immediately softened when she saw that. Yumi's determination in things may sometimes be hit-or-miss but when she does find something that she is confident in and is determined to see through to the end, one can't help but let things play out that way. Sachiko smiled at her and gave a curt nod, which Yumi took as a green light and immediately started for the door. She stopped at the door with her hand on the knob and looked at Touko for a second and then smiled. The Rosa Chinensis En Bouton hoped that Touko could understand the subtle message in that smile. A message that said:

_Don't worry…I'll bring her back. I promise._

...

Yumi got out of the room and looked around to see if she could quickly pick up Kanako's trail. Much to her surprise, there was nothing in the hallway except for her.

_Fast…_Yumi thought of the tall girl's natural speed. She then remembered how fast Kanako was during the Sports Festival and face palmed to her own ineptitude at thinking ahead. Yumi thought of where Kanako could have gone to so she could be alone…and subsequently drew a blank.

"Well, that is obvious since I don't know what goes on in Kanako-chan's mind." That last part felt like a needle through her heart. As much as she wanted to help Kanako, it would all be pointless if she could not understand the girl. Yumi shook her head to purge those thoughts from her mind.

_This is not the time for this! Youko-sama, Sei-sama and Eriko-sama would be disappointed in me for stalling at such an important time._

_Think! Where would I go if I were Kanako?_ Yumi recalled her past experiences and the stories of her dear friends for the past year.

_What do all those events have in common?_ Yumi racked her brain for the answer. When she reminisced about those events, one thing kept popping up over and over again.

"The greenhouse!"

...

Yumi stood before the greenhouse very out of breath. She really wasn't an athlete and her recent run had proven that once again but heaving or not she still opened the door and found who she was looking for.

"So…this…is…where you were…I…was looking…everywhere for you…" Yumi said between exhausted breaths. She noticed that Kanako did not respond so she took this time to catch her breath and let her heart rate slow down from Mach 0.7 to normal speeds. Yumi took one last deep breath before she started talking to Kanako.

"Why…Why did you suddenly run out like that…Kanako-chan?" Yumi noticed that she was still a bit out of breath. She noticed that Kanako grimaced at her question.

_Kanak—_ Yumi's thoughts were cut off by Kanako.

"It was because of…that sickening creature that was wearing YOUR costume." Kanako spat out bitterly.

"Yuuki?" Yumi asked.

"Yes…the fact that people would accept him as a likeness of you is simply…" Kanako stopped herself from continuing and turned her back to Yumi.

_I knew that Yuuki and I looked alike but, is it really that bad for you?_ Yumi thought. True, she and Yuuki looked like, and have been repeatedly mistaken as, twins. Yumi recalled back during the 'Battle of Hanadera' that she was the spitting image of her younger brother.

"I don't want this…this is too much for me Yumi-sama." Kanako's words snapped Yumi out of her thoughts. She could hear Kanako sobbing after that. She walked up to the tall girl. It pained her to see Kanako suffering like this.

"Kanako-chan…" Yumi put her hand on Kanako's shoulder and turned the tall girl to face her. Yumi's eyes widened at what she saw.

_She's crying…_

"Yumi-sama…" Kanako lowered herself to Yumi's shoulder and continued crying. Yumi could only think of one thing to do at this very moment. She wrapped her arms around the tall girl and held her as tight as she could.

_Don't worry Kanako-chan…you are not alone…_Yumi thought as she held the crying Kanako, neither noticing Touko watching them from outside whose eyes showed a different kind of pain.

...

Yumi managed to calm Kanako down and the two of them made their way back to where the others were. Kanako stopped a few feet from the door. Yumi looked back at her questioningly.

"Kanako-chan?" Yumi called back to the hesitant Kanako.

"I'm not sure that I should...after…" Yumi walked right up to the taller girl before she could finish her sentence. Yumi was only a couple of inches away from her and was smiling radiantly at her. The sudden action made Kanako blush a bit and she took a half-step back. It was only a half-step because a large part of her really liked the attention.

"Y—Yu...Yumi-sama?" Kanako barely managed to say before Yumi took her hand and pulled her to the door. Kanako was no longer able to resist since Yumi was latched on to her hand. Yumi opened the door and saw that only Sachiko and Yuuki were left in the room, Yuuki had long since removed the kimono and got his uniform back on.

_Touko-chan isn't here…_ Yumi thought sadly as she knew about the girl's growing feelings toward her supposed nemesis.

"Yumi…" Sachiko's voice called her Petit Soeur. Yumi noticed Kanako trying to hide behind her. The tall girl had always been intimidated of Sachiko ever since she was confronted in the greenhouse several weeks ago, though it wasn't much of hiding due to the height difference between Yumi and Kanako. The Rosa Chinensis gave Kanako a quick glare before looking at Yumi with a smile.

"We will begin regular practice next week and I sent everyone home after that announcement." Sachiko said in a calm tone. Yumi had expected Sachiko to chew out Kanako for what she did so she was very surprised at the odd gentleness of her Onee-sama. She glanced at Yuuki and saw her brother sighing in relief. Yumi smiled inwardly.

_I guess I'll have to thank him for that later…_

"Now then, shall we head home as well?" Sachiko said to the girls and looking back at Yuuki who just absentmindedly nodded. The four of them headed towards the exit and said their prayers to the Mary Statue; Yuuki hung back as not to disturb them. When they reached the school gates…

"I will be going now…" Kanako said before separating from the group. Yumi wanted to go after her but a voice at the back of he head told her not to. She just sighed and turned to Sachiko.

"You've done what you could Yumi, you should be proud of that." Sachiko said. Yumi nodded in acknowledgement but she thought that she could have done more for Kanako.

Sachiko eventually had to part ways with the Fukuzawa siblings and said her goodbyes to them. Yuuki and Yumi were walking together when they saw a familiar face walking out of a grocery store.

"Ryou-sempai!" Yuuki called out. Ryou was holding two bags of full of cooking ingredients. He turned to them and they saw that he had small gauze near his left eye.

"What happened to your face?" Yumi asked, rather alarmed at the injury of her friend.

"Oh…this?" Ryou tilted his head to the left side to indicate where the gauze was. The Fukuzawa siblings nodded.

"It's…nothing important." Ryou played them off with a smile. What really happened was that while Skuld was trying to smash Ryou's head in, she threw the wrench in her hand at him and it grazed him on the head as he turned around to check the distance between them, bad move. Thankfully, there wasn't any lasting injury thanks to Belldandy's 'First-aid' and Skuld apologized over and over again for what she did to Ryou. That's what happened but Ryou was too tired to recount the events all over again to Yumi and Yuuki.

"But…" Yumi knew that a head injury is never 'nothing important' and her face clearly showed her concern.

"Don't worry about it. I'm fine really…I just bought groceries for goodness sakes!" Ryou lifted up the bags of groceries in his hands. True, someone with serious head injuries would not normally walk around and buy food.

"If you say so…" Yuuki said. The younger Fukuzawa looked up to Ryou and knows that he could take a hit so Yuuki decided to just trust him in that regard. Yumi was more hesitant in believing that but did not want to trouble Ryou any further so she just nodded in acknowledgement.

"Groovy! You two headed home? Pretty rare to see you two together like this." Ryou said in his usual cheery tone.

"We had costume fittings for a play that the Yamayurikai and the Hanadera Student Council will be putting up for the Lilian School Festival." Yumi answered.

"A play huh? So, will you two be acting?" Ryou asked. Both Yumi and Yuuki froze at his question. They looked at each other grimly, hesitant in answering his question. Ryou looked back to them in wonder.

"Was it something I said?" Ryou asked since the Fukuzawa siblings looked like they just saw a sentient alien parasite jump out of Ryou.

"We'd rather not talk about it…" They both said at the same time.

"Right…" Ryou chose to just drop the issue since he was tired. They passed the park where Ryou had told Yumi about his past and Yumi suddenly remembered the issue between Touko and Kanako.

_Maybe Ryou-san can help!_ She suddenly thought. Ryou and noticed that Yumi suddenly stopped walking and turned around to see what happened to her.

"Yumi-san?" Ryou called out to her. Yumi was staring in the direction of the park.

"Yuuki…could you head home first…I need to talk to Ryou-san about something." Yumi said in a solemn tone, her gaze still towards the park. Ryou and Yuuki looked at each other and back at Yumi.

"What about? I'm injured, tired, and carrying perishable goods. Can it wait for some other time?" Ryou reasoned. Yumi shook her head to his words.

"It's won't take up too much time, I just really need your advice for something…please." Yumi looked straight at Ryou when she said the last part. She had steely eyes that said that she won't budge in this matter. Ryou just sighed and walked towards Yumi.

"Don't worry Yuuki-san. I'll make sure she gets home safely." Ryou said while walking away from Yuuki.

"Alright then, take care you two…" Yuuki said before leaving Yumi and Ryou. After Yuuki was out of sight, Yumi started to walk into the park.

_I wonder what's up with her now?_ Ryou thought before following Yumi into the park.

...

HURRAH! Please R&R so I'll know if this fic is WIN or not...Pretty please!


	11. Chapter 11

**Author's Notes:** This one took a longer time than expected because of work and the A&R Valentines Special but finally! Here is Chapter 11! Thanks to everyone who has supported this and A&R! This is my longest update for this story because there were some unanswered questions regarding Yumi's meeting with Youko in the second chapter of A&R so this pretty much covers that entire thing. Anyway, Please enjoy!

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything on this fic that can be used against me in a court of law.**

...

_How should I explain this to him?_ Yumi wondered while pacing around. Ryou was seated on the very swing where he told Yumi about his past, his groceries were set down beside him. He was looking at Yumi intently and was wondering what the girl was worried about this time.

_She looks pretty upset…maybe it's serious this time…then again…_Ryou had already gotten used to Yumi's 'End of World is Nigh!' faces since it's usually just been the girl overreacting about something. He was in the middle of debating weather or not Yumi really did have a big problem when the girl in question stopped pacing around and was now standing in front of him. Ryou noted Yumi's unsure eyes.

_Here it comes…_Ryou braced for what he thought would be a standard Yumi overreaction…boy, is he in for a surprise.

"Well…you see…" Yumi began explaining the situation with Touko and Kanako.

...

"…and that is why I need help on this…" Yumi said, ending her situation report. Ryou had a face that pretty much said OMG throughout the whole thing. The young man turned away from Yumi while covering his mouth with one of his hands.

"This has got to be the most troublesome romantic situation I've heard about since Kamen Rider Kiva…" Ryou muttered to himself, shuddering when he mentioned Kamen Rider Kiva. He shook his head to regain composure and looked back at Yumi.

"Quite a hole she has herself in huh?" Ryou commented, he was of course talking about Touko who had a 'Falling of the enemy' kind of situation with Kanako. Yumi nodded in sympathy of the drill-haired girl. Yumi then saw Ryou cover his mouth with a hand again but this time, she noticed that he was contemplating about something…most likely the current issue at hand. He stayed like that for a while and Yumi was wondering what brilliantly simple and clever idea Ryou would come up with that will be the silver bullet to all her problems with her two kouhais. Ryou finally ended his contemplation and looked at Yumi, the girl swallowed in anticipation.

"………I got nothing." Ryou said while looking away and scratching the back of his head. Yumi felt like she would crumble into dust where she stood and be blown off into the sunset. Ryou noted her reaction and sighed.

"Sorry Yumi-san…I tried to come up with an idea of how to solve this but I can't really do much with the situation as it is. I'm a reactive force when it comes to helping people so something needs to have already happened before I can come up with a countermeasure. When it comes to something that is preemptive like what you want, I'm no good." Ryou admitted. Yumi's shoulders slumped at the revelation.

"Oh…" Yumi said in a clearly disappointed tone. Ryou felt like he got Rider Kicked when he heard that one word from Yumi, the young man didn't have the heart to just leave it at that.

"I may not be able to help with this but maybe someone who has more experience in the matter will be of more use…" Ryou suggested to which Yumi hummed in consideration.

"Someone who has experience huh?" Yumi wondered. The first person that popped into Yumi's head was Satou Sei since she had that thing with Kubo Shiori.

_But it wouldn't feel right to drag Sei-sama into this knowing what happened with her own problem with this kind of issue…_Yumi reconsidered the idea of recruiting Sei. Ryou saw that Yumi was still having a hard time deciding who the right person is to ask help from and decided to throw her another bone.

"What about the former Rosa Chinensis?" Ryou said while looking up at the sky like he occasionally likes to do.

"Eh?" Yumi was surprised to know that Ryou knew about Yamayurikai members other than the current ones.

"Yeah…what was her name again? Mi…Mi—Yu…Miyu…ko…Kyou…ko?" Ryou said, struggling to recall Youko's name and his face showed it as well since he grimaced at the sky.

"You mean…Mizuno Youko?" Yumi corrected her friend.

"Yeah! That's it! Mizuno Youko!" Ryou said, glad that Yumi cleared that little problem up.

"How do you know Youko-sama?" Yumi inquired.

"Oh…I heard about her from Aunt Kaori a year ago when I first started sneaking into Lilian." Ryou casually said.

"Sneaking into?" Yumi was surprised at what Ryou said and the young man shook his head.

"Worded it wrong…I just didn't want to be noticed whenever I went there. Anyway, I think that Mizuno-san would be a better help with this than me since she's a natural meddler and all…" Ryou said with a bored smile.

"Well…I wouldn't say…Meddler…Youko-sama just enjoys helping people with their problems. It's a good thing." Yumi retorted, trying her best to defend her former Grand Soeur.

"Oh really? I think that just makes her a meddler. I hear that she still pokes her nose in other people's business even though no one asked her to. She gets herself involve in other people's problems because she enjoys it? That pretty much a meddler if I ever heard one." Ryou countered.

"Umm…well…Youko-sama is…I mean… she's not…I…Uuhh…" Yumi was now racking her brain to come up with a good comeback to what Ryou said but such a thing really isn't her strong point and Ryou noticed that and sighed.

_She's gonna be the one to take over the mantle of The Red Rose? She's gotta realize just how strong she really is then. What would a Kamen Rider do?_ Ryou considered for a second.

_A Good Kamen Rider…_He revised his earlier thought.

"Meddler or not, she'll be your best bet for a good idea in the matter." Ryou laid out the bottom line for Yumi.

"I guess…I'm sorry that I wasted your time Ryou-san." Yumi said in a submissive tone. Ryou then stood up and looked hard at Yumi, to which the girl felt like she was shrinking on the spot.

"Could you please stop doing that…" Ryou said in a serious tone.

"Stop…what?" Yumi asked, slightly frightened.

_A Chaotic Good Rider then huh? Tough love then…_Ryou thought before taking a step forward to which Yumi responded by taking a step back.

"All the apologies for every little thing…you sincerely asked for help...that is nothing to apologize about." Ryou said, his voice was still serious and he was still stepping forward so Yumi was still stepping back.

"You shouldn't apologize if you don't have to…if you keep doing that, people will just think that you are weak, take advantage of you start and walking all over you…" Ryou continued, much to Yumi's distress.

"Stop saying sorry for things that you are innocent of and start standing up for yourself…your precious Onee-sama won't always be there to cover for you…" Ryou kept on his attack and Yumi suddenly found herself backed up against a tree. She tried to get away but Ryou planted his arms on the tree with Yumi in between, preventing her escape.

"Stop playing around and get serious! You're part of the Yamayurikai! You're Rosa Chinensis En Bouton! You can't afford to be like this when you take over! And don't say that you never intended that to happen! Don't you dare run away from this by saying that because you should already know what the name Rosa Chinensis entails the moment you accepted Ogasawara-san's rosary!" Ryou said, raising his voice and scaring Yumi. Ryou then leaned in close and put his face right next to Yumi and making the young woman blush.

"I'm not going to apologize for this because I'm doing this to help you. You are a lot stronger than you give yourself credit for Yumi-san. I want you to realize that and use that strength to help your school the best you can when you become Rosa Chinensis. Make your predecessors proud." Ryou whispered in Yumi's ear. He then pulled away and put his arms down. Yumi saw that he had a warm smile.

"And that's pretty much it…" He said before turning around to get his groceries. Yumi was still motionless, leaning up against the tree.

"Oh! And if you want me to apologize for what I just did…" The young man said while turning around, a stupid grin plastered on his face.

"…You'll just have to make me!" He confidently said. Yumi felt her heart skip a beat when she heard him say that, her faced flushed for good measure. If Ryou noticed that then he was doing a good job on not reacting to it. Ryou walked on to get his bags of groceries and found Yumi waiting for him at the entrance of the park.

"I thought that you'd go on ahead without me considering what I did…" Ryou admitted with an apologetic smile. Yumi shook her head in response.

"No…I understand what you were trying to say…thank you Ryou-san." Yumi said in genuine gratitude.

"My feelings reached you then huh?" Ryou mused, closing his eyes.

"What?" Yumi said in surprise.

"Oh! Nothing…just something Belldandy-sempai says sometimes." Ryou shrugged when he said that.

"Oh…okay…" Yumi dropped the issue.

"C'mon. It's getting dark and I promised Yuuki-san that I'd escort you home." Ryou said before starting to walk.

"What? That's alright; you don't have to worry yourself about that. I can very much go home by myself." Yumi said. The Nekomi student looked back at Yumi and squinted at her.

"Was it something I said?" At least she didn't say sorry again…

"Actually…yeah…first of all…" Ryou pointed in the direction he was walking to.

"…my apartment is that way anyway…" Ryou dryly said.

"oh…" Yumi responded.

"…secondly…I promised Yuuki-san that I'd see you home so stop complaining and walk with me already." Ryou said, leaving no room for further argument. Yumi just nodded and followed Ryou since she wasn't in the mood to get on his bad side twice in one day. The two of them were walking when Ryou suddenly stopped in his tracks. Yumi already passed him because of that and the girl looked back to see Ryou wide-eyed…like he just saw something awful…

"Wh—what's wrong?" Yumi asked, starting to feel uneasy again. Ryou looked down on the ground and seemed like a cloud of darkness was over his face. Yumi cautiously approached him because her worry overcame her initial fear of his current state.

"Today is Saturday right?" Ryou said in a grim voice.

"Uh…yeah…" Yumi replied.

"And it's already passed four in the afternoon?" Ryou asked again.

"Uh…yeah…" Yumi replied again but Ryou just went silent afterwards. Yumi cautiously walked closer and saw Ryou's face. He looked like something bad had just happened…something REALLY bad.

"Ryou-san! Ryou-san!" Yumi nudged Ryou's shoulder to try to snap the young man out of his daze. Ryou did not respond but Yumi thought she heard him say something.

"Did you say something Ryou-san?" Yumi inquired. Ryou looked up at her then looked up at the sky.

"I missed it…" he muttered.

"Missed it?" Yumi cocked her head to the side at the cryptic statement.

"There is…was…supposed to be a teaser trailer today on TV-Asahi for the new Kamen Rider show that will air next year…The trailer was scheduled to be shown at four in the afternoon…and I missed it…" Ryou said while still looking up at the sky. You'd almost expect for a melodramatic music score to start playing any second now. Yumi felt a sweat drop at Ryou's little predicament.

"Oh…I see…so it was about Kamen Rider huh? I'm glad it wasn't anything serious." Yumi regretted saying that because the young man suddenly gave her a death glare that made Yumi take a few steps back.

"I'll let that one slip just this once Yumi-san. But if you ever say that Kamen Rider isn't anything serious for me then…" Ryou trailed off for added effect.

"Right! I got it!" Yumi quickly said while putting up her hands in defense.

_Yes…I was, and still am known as a fierce Kamen Rider fan._ Yumi recalled Ryou's words from before.

_I guess he really is huh?_ Yumi thought. She then heard some rustling plastic and saw that Ryou was looking away from her, his left hand over his face and his bags of groceries in his right hand.

_I can't believe that I chastised Yumi-san because of Kamen Rider…what the hell!_ Ryou thought in embarrassment of what he had just done. Yumi was about to inquire as to what was eating Ryou this time when he suddenly stepped past her and…

"It's getting late…let's go." Ryou quickly said before walking away. Yumi swore that she saw him blushing under his left hand, the thought made the girl smile.

_I guess he gets embarrassed over silly things like Onee-sama does._ Yumi fondly thought at the unexpected similarity between Ryou and Sachiko before catching up with the still blushing Ryou.

...

Yumi managed to safely get back home without further incident and was now sitting on her bed while holding a wireless phone. Youko had given Yumi and Sachiko her contact number before she graduated from Lilian because she still wanted to stay in contact with her precious Soeurs. Yumi had never had to use it because she really didn't see any need to contact Youko and Yumi had thought that she would be too busy for just some simple small talk, though honestly, Yumi wouldn't even know what to talk about.

"Should I really call her? What if she's busy? What if…"

_Stop playing around and get serious! _

_You're part of the Yamayurikai! _

_You're Rosa Chinensis En Bouton! _

_You can't afford to be like this when you take over!_

Ryou's words came up in Yumi's mind again. She felt her heart sink when she remembered how harsh those words seemed.

_You are a lot stronger than you give yourself credit for Yumi-san._

_I want you to realize that and use that strength to help your school the best you can when you become Rosa Chinensis. _

_Make your predecessors proud._

Again…his words rang in her mind. Yumi felt anxious but understood Ryou's intentions on why he had said all of those things to her. She had to have more confidence in herself from now on. There were now more people depending on and looking up to her. Touko and Kanako were only the tip of the iceberg. How can she hope to lead the entire Highschool department of Lilian as Rosa Chinensis if she couldn't even help Touko and Kanako…or herself for that matter, thinking of her role in the upcoming play. Yumi shook her head to forget the doubts that she was currently having.

_Ryou-san is right…I need to believe in myself more. Youko-sama is the only one I can ask for help at this point so…I will take that chance!_ Yumi thought, steeling herself before opening up the little notebook on her desk that had Youko's number.

...

A black, folding cell phone was constantly ringing on top of a small bed that looked like that it hasn't been fixed up for days now. The room with the bed was currently empty but the lights were on. Pieces of clothing from formal business attire could be seen haphazardly tossed about, albeit missing the blouse. The sound of a refrigerator door closing brought quick but fleeting interruption to constant ringing of the phone.

"All right! All right! Who is it now?" a tired but firm female voice said from another room. The owner of the voice entered the bedroom with a bottle of water in hand and was only clad in a white long-sleeved blouse, most likely a part of the business attire currently on the floor, which was lazily unbuttoned to reveal that the only thing underneath the blouse was the woman's pride…and her panties. Indeed, the current state of former Rosa Chinensis Mizuno Youko is truly a sight to behold. The woman in question picked up the phone and was surprised to see that the number calling her was unlisted in her registry.

_Odd…I don't give out my number to anyone I don't know the number of first…unless._ She pondered for a moment before answering the phone.

"Hello…This is Mizuno Youko speaking." Youko said. She then heard some odd noises from the other line before…

_Whaaah! Ough!_ Youko recognized that voice instantly and was debating on weather to be happy for the sudden call…or be worried about what that person's reaction was about and the subsequent thumping noise afterwards.

_Oww…_Yumi's subdued voice came through the earpiece.

"Yumi-chan?" Youko said, wanting to confirm what she already knew…and to check if Yumi was alright.

...

"Oowww…Yo—Youko-sama?" Yumi managed to say while trying to get back on the bed her left hand rubbing her rear while her right held the phone. Yumi had been pacing around her room while waiting for Youko to pick up and was at the verge of hanging up when Youko finally answered. Yumi, in true Yumi fashion, was caught by surprised and nearly dropped the phone on the floor. She managed to save it but ended up tripping herself in the process and landing flat on her butt, painfully it seems.

_Yumi-chan? Yumi-chan? Are you alright?_ Youko repeated over the phone.

"I'm alright Youko-sama…I just hurt my butt…" Yumi said.

...

"I see…and I expect that you and you butt are fine now?" Youko tried her best to fight back a giggle but ultimately fails and Yumi sure heard it.

_Youko-sama!_ Yumi voiced her embarrassment. Youko could very well imagine what Yumi looked like at the moment.

"I'm sorry Yumi-chan but it has been too long since I had the chance to tease you." Youko admitted to Yumi and at the same time admitting to herself how much she had missed Yumi's sunny personality.

_Youko-sama…I had expected that kind of reaction from Sei-sama and maybe even Eriko-sama. But not from you…_Yumi said over the line. Youko had adjusted herself so she was sitting on the mattress while leaning back on the backboard of the bed.

"Just goes to show how much I missed you Yumi-chan. Now, to what do I owe this honor? This is the first time that you have called me afterall." Youko half-joked while getting to the point at the same time, her bottle of water was left on the small table beside her bed.

...

"Umm…right…well I uhh…" Yumi suddenly felt like she wasn't too sure about asking help from Youko and was shifting on her bed while looking around her room as if looking for something or someone. Finding no such thing, she just sat there quietly. She wanted to speak but the words would not come.

_Yumi-chan?_ Youko called out, making sure that Yumi was still there.

"YES! I'm here Youko-sama!" Yumi blurted out.

_That's good, I had thought that I lost you back there._ Youko said, her voice seemed like she was stretching.

"I'm so--"

_You sincerely asked for help...that is nothing to apologize about…_

"I mean…I need your advice about something Youko-sama." Yumi caught herself before she reflexively apologized to Youko when she once again recalled what Ryou told her earlier. Yumi couldn't see it but Youko was rather surprised at Yumi's action. She had anticipated that the girl would try to apologize for supposedly bothering her like this but she did not, this intrigued Youko.

_I see…well, you already know that I'd be glad to help you with any problems if I'm able to._ Youko said in a reassuring tone. Yumi held her chest and sighed in relief at Youko's willingness to help her, it was the right choice to call her.

"Thank you very much Youko-sama!" Yumi barely managed to contain her joy.

_Not a problem Yumi-chan. Now, what is this about?_ Youko asked.

"Yes…actually, this is a love problem…" Yumi admitted while fidgeting around on her bed.

...

Youko's eyes shot open at what Yumi said. She had just closed her eyes a few seconds ago to try to relax for a bit so she can at least try to concentrate on what Yumi was about to say even through her fatigue from the day's activities but Yumi's words knocked all her tiredness right out of her.

"Lo—love?" Youko was able to contain her surprise but only by the skin of her teeth.

_Yumi-chan wants advice on love?_ Youko shook her head, she must not jump to conclusions to soon. Such was not like her at all so she thought she was much more tired that she had originally expected to be.

"I see…and…is it…about you Yumi-chan?" Youko probed.

_Eh?! What?! No! It's not me Youko-sama!_ Well, that shoots down Youko's main theory. She found it refreshing not to be right all the time…more challenge that way.

"Just making sure…now, why don't you tell me about it then?" Youko asked, letting Yumi have the floor…so to speak.

_Alright…you see, it is about two of my juniors…_Yumi then proceeded to tell the former yet forever Red Rose about Touko and Kanako. After Yumi had managed to give Youko a brief background as to how Yumi was related to the two girls, Youko noticed that her head was starting to swim. She won't be able to help Yumi like this. She doubted that she could even get up from bed anymore as the way she was at the moment.

"Yumi-chan?" Youko called the attention of her junior.

_Yes? What's wrong Youko-sama? Have I been talking too much again?_ Yumi asked, once again thinking that she had done something wrong but did not apologize as Youko had once again anticipated. Even with Youko half-incapacitated, she noticed this subtle change in Yumi…and she liked it, a small smile through her tired features made her thoughts known throughout the room even though she was alone.

"No…nothing of the sort, I'm just starting to feel very tired that's all…" Youko reluctantly admitted, her voice betraying her fatigue. She heard Yumi gasp over the other line.

"Don't worry Yumi-chan, I'm used to this kind of thing now. I just don't think that I'll be able to help you properly the way that I am right now."

...

"Oh…I didn't know that you were so exhausted today Youko-sama…I'm sorry if kept on babbling like that…" Yumi finally apologized because she thought that she really had to this time. Youko felt somewhat relieved to find that Yumi had not foregone apologies altogether.

_It's alright Yumi. I just need some sleep, that's all._ Youko tried to reassure Yumi. The young woman looked at her clock and saw that it was eleven in the evening. Yumi thought that Youko must be really exhausted if she needed to sleep already.

"Then you should go to sleep Youko-sama. Forcing yourself to stay up is bad for your health." Yumi said in s somewhat motherly tone ironically considering whom she was talking to…but hey, it's Yumi. Youko also noticed the odd irony and let out a weak laugh for effect.

...

"Yes…I probably should. However, I am still interested in what you were talking about and I would like to hear more about it." Youko said, her old Rosa Chinensis aura seeping out.

_Umm…yes, I would like your insight on this very much Youko-sama…but…_Yumi hesitantly said. The former Red Rose noted that Yumi had reverted back to her old self again.

_Change takes time afterall…_Youko thought. But Youko wasn't kidding when she said that she was interested in Kanako and Touko's situation and, even through all her fatigue and verge of collapse, she wanted to know more.

"It's Sunday tomorrow right? Are you free Yumi-chan?" Youko asked.

_Yes…I don't really have any plans that day._ Yumi paused for a moment after saying yes to Youko, probably to double-check if she really was free that day.

"Good…then let's meet at the park in front of the station near Lilian." Youko proposed.

_Eh? What do you mean Youko-sama?_ Yumi was a bit puzzled.

"I'm asking you out on a little date Yumi-chan…" Youko said playfully. Is she REALLY on the verge of passing out?

_D—date?!_

"Of course…you and Sachiko had one, so I can't see why I can't spend a day with my precious Yumi-chan." Youko said, doing her best emulation of Sei.

_Ummm…well…I…I don't really mind but…I mean…_Yumi probably didn't know where she was at the moment, let alone be capable of coming up with a coherent response.

"And I will be able to listen to the rest of your story as well…so we get two birds with one stone right?" Youko said, as if giving Yumi and offer she can't refuse.

_Well…in that case…alright! I accept Youko-sama._ Yumi replied, her cheerful voice was back.

"Good, we'll meet around the large fountain in the middle of the park at around eleven in the morning alright?" Youko said, pretty much taking full control of the whole thing.

_Sounds good to me Youko-sama._ And Yumi was more than happy to comply.

"Now, if you'll excuse me. I really do need some sleep. Goodnight Yumi-chan." Youko said as she really was at the limit of her limit at the moment.

_Oh yes! Of course Youko-sama. Please have a good night's sleep._ Yumi said before the two of them hung up. Youko put her phone on the small table beside her, turned off the lights and went straight to sleep…her bottle of water was long since forgotten.

...

Ryou woke up the next day in a stupor. His head wound had already miraculously healed (read: Belldandy) but he still felt like he was hit with a large blunt metal object on the head when he awoke. He still managed to cook up a decent breakfast of Sunnyside up eggs on some toast and a glass of milk, and no, he's not in elementary school or anything like that. He was eating his breakfast pretty much on autopilot and really never managed to enjoy it because he was only half-conscious. He looked outside the window and saw that it was a pretty sunny day.

"Kinda crappy disposition on such a beautiful day…" Ryou said to himself before taking a bite off his toast. He flipped through the channels of his TV and found nothing but dramas and morning cartoons. He grumbled and turned the TV off, he was already don't with his breakfast at this point he washed up, took a shower and decided to step out for the day since it was rare that there was nothing going on during a Sunday for the Motor Club. He put on a black T-shirt, which had a print of a chibi Kamen Rider Super-1 on it that was doing its transformation pose. He also put on a pair of gray jeans and his somewhat worn out black Reeboks.

"Might as well kill some time there for now…" He said to himself while grabbing his wallet and stepping out of his apartment while making sure to lock up of course.

...

Yumi was sitting on one of the benches that surrounded the fountain which was their meeting place. Youko didn't really specify on where in this area they needed to meet but Yumi figured that they would bump into each other soon enough. Yumi woke up later than she had wanted and ended up scrambling to get herself together for her meeting with Youko. She was wearing a simple red T-shirt that had sleeves just up to the shoulders and was also wearing the jeans that she had worn during her date with Sachiko, the irony of that was lost to Yumi due to her urgency at the time. She also had a yellow wristwatch on and unmarked white sneakers and her signature pigtails are held on with simple red ribbons and thankfully managed to grab a white handbag with her with some money and other womanly essentials in it…again, due to her urgency. All her effort was actually really sad and on the verge of being rather funny due to the fact that she had arrived at the appointed place twenty-seven minutes before the set time.

"Well at least I'm not late…and presentable…" Yumi gave herself a once over.

"I think…" Yumi was so caught up on trying to remember if she had forgotten something that she notice that someone was walking up to her.

"Yumi-chan?" That someone called out to her.

"Wha!" Yumi jumped up, much to the delight of the person standing near her.

"My...at least you haven't changed" The person said while expertly holding down a laugh.

"Mou! Anyway...thank you very much for coming here, I know that you are very busy but I don't really know who else to turn to..." Yumi bowed to the other person.

"That's not a problem...I told you that I would help you whenever I could. You were just lucky that I was free today. Maybe it's fate?" The person said with a giggle.

"Maybe...thank you again for coming to see me...Youko-sama" Yumi told Youko and gave her senior one of her World Peace Inducing smiles. Yumi managed to get a good look at Youko and saw that the usually formal Red Rose was rather casual in her attire today. The former Rosa Chinensis was wearing a light-blue, long-sleeved blouse and dark blue jeans with black flat heels. She also had a black wristwatch and matching shoulder bag. The most notable feature of Youko's current ensemble though was that she was wearing a red choker with a silver cross hanging from it. It all seemed so contradictory to Youko yet it looked so good on her.

"See something you like Yumi-chan?" Youko joked.

"What?! Oh! That's just because this is the first time I've seen you like this Youko-sama." Yumi honestly said. Youko offered her hand to Yumi who took it without hesitation.

"You're quite early Yumi-chan." Youko pointed out, eliciting a light blush from the girl.

"I was actually in a hurry because I had woken up late today and I barely managed to get some decent clothes picked out because of it…then I find out that I arrived earlier that I had thought." Yumi said in a depressed tone while looking away from Youko who then put at hand on the younger woman's shoulder.

"I think it all looks lovely on you…" Youko said in a motherly voice and saw Yumi's visible relief. She really knows how to handle Sachiko and Yumi.

"Thank you Youko-sama…" Yumi showed her gratitude and relief.

"Now, let's find a place where we can properly talk alright?" Youko said in a thoughtfully to which Yumi nodded eagerly.

"But where should we go?" Yumi asked. Youko looked around and put her index finger under her chin as if going through contemplation. After a few second of humming on Youko's part, Yumi just stood there like an entranced hamster, she looked back at Yumi with a smile that said 'Eureka'.

"I know a place…" Youko said, Yumi never got to say anything more since Youko took her hand and started walking to one of the exits of the park.

...

Yumi and Youko were now standing in front of what looked to Yumi like a regular café. It was one of the usually unnoticeable cafés near the station because it melded into the rest of the scenery so well that you really wouldn't notice it unless you were very perceptive, were purposely trying to find it, or already knew where it was. The younger girl looked at the sign above the door and found out the name of the café.

"A-Ta-Ra-Shi-A?" Yumi read the Katakana characters that the name of the café comprised of. She really wasn't sure what that was supposed to mean so she looked at Youko with an expression that said 'What does it mean?'

"The name of the café is Atlasia…" Youko said while pointing to a sign hanging near the door and was facing the sidewalk which showed the name of the shop in English.

"That's pretty unique name…" Yumi admitted.

"It is…now let's not stand here any longer." Youko said before opening the door. Once Yumi got a look inside, she was rather surprised at the café. At a glance, it was a pretty standard café, it was kind of like the one she and Sachiko ended up in during the last part of their half-day date months ago. The appearance of the café itself had nothing unusual, it was the waitresses that were the eye catchers…the sharper readers should already have SOME inkling as to what the author is referring to.

"These are…Me-Me-Me-Maids?!" Yumi voiced her surprise at the fact that all the waitresses in the café were wearing maid uniforms. And indeed they were, the maid outfits were more of the industrial revolution style uniforms with a blue long-sleeved dress with a large skirt that reached to their shins and was covered with a large apron that covered most of their front and of course the classic maid hair band and brown lace boots. They had a more disciplined and respectable feel to them as opposed to those silly French Maid-Types with their white on black ensemble, short skirts, fishnet stockings, black high heels and such…thankfully, Youko didn't lead Yumi into one of THOSE cafés.

"What's wrong Yumi-chan?" Youko asked the other girl as if everything here was perfectly normal for her. Yumi turned to her and pointed a trembling finger at the various happenings inside the café, and really, what would you expect? The maids were taking orders and such like a normal café. The customers are mostly pretty normal aside from the occasional sweaty-looking otaku that managed to sneak in. Yumi was busy looking around the establishment that she didn't notice the maid that had walked up to them.

"Gokigenyo Mistresses...." The voice of the maid was respectful and precise, almost as if she does this for a living…well…I guess that she does. Yumi suddenly looked at the maid. She seemed to look a bit older that Yumi was, most likely in her early twenties and fit perfectly to her uniform and role as her long brown hair was in a braid and went over her left shoulder. She also had a small pair of glasses on. Whether the glasses was for practical use or just there for aesthetics' sake was unknown to Yumi. She then saw Youko move in front of her, to greet the maid probably.

"Gokigenyo, nice to see you again Natsumikan." Youko greeted the maid casually, and by name too, which made Yumi think that she had gone to this place before.

"It's nice too see you again as well, Mizuno-sama." The maid known as Natsumikan said while bowing to Youko. I guess she really has come here before, quite often too if she's already at a naming basis with the employees. The maid then turned to Yumi and bowed as well.

"Gokigenyo…" The maid bowed to Yumi to which the slightly startled girl gave a shy nod to.

"…A friend of yours?" The maid asked Youko.

"Yes, she was…" Youko turned to Yumi.

"…and still is a dear junior of mine from when I was in Highschool." The second part of that statement made Yumi's heart swell up and all her doubts about asking Youko for help were disintegrated.

"I see…" The maid said and turned to Yumi.

"It's nice to make you acquaintance." The polite woman said.

"Umm…Yes! It's nice to meet you too! I'm Fukuzawa Yumi!" Yumi blurted out in her trademark way much to the surprise of Natsumikan, Youko wasn't fazed at all and actually looked amused…she's gotten too used to it by now.

"Ahhh…yes…Welcome to Café Atlasia Fukuzawa-sama." The maid quickly got her composure back after getting startled by Yumi's sudden reaction.

"Can you get the two of us a table Natsumikan?" Youko asked.

"Of course Mizuno-sama." The maid quickly replied.

"Natsumi…kan?" Yumi muttered with imaginary question marks over her head. The two older women looked at each other then gave Yumi wry smiles.

"What?" The girl asked out of genuine curiosity to the reactions.

"That…is actually just a nickname that was given to me here in the café. My real name is Hikari Natsumi." Natsumikan…err…Natsumi said to clear up Yumi's confusion.

"Oh…so it's just a nickname." Yumi said in enlightenment and in slight relief. She had thought that having Natsumikan as her actual name seemed at bit too…

_Childish maybe?_ Yumi thought, she's too nice to consider 'stupid' instead of 'childish'.

"Now…let me show you ladies to a table then." Natsumi said before walking to lead the two customers to their table. They were led up to the second floor of the café since the ground floor had no available tables, not bad for a shop that was as well hidden as it was. When the got there, they pretty much saw more of the same: Natsumi's colleagues were serving the customers there as normal. Natsumi led them into the second floor area of Atlasia and Yumi was looking around and saw the last thing she thought that she would in a place like this.

"Ryou-san!" Yumi exclaimed, to the surprise of everyone on that floor. True enough, Ryou was seated in a four-person table near one of the windows on that floor and was staring at whatever it was he was staring at outside until Yumi called out his name and got his attention…and the attention of everyone else there.

"Ummm…Uhhh…aahhh…I'm uhh…I mean…" Yumi stuttered after a good number of the shades of red flashed on her face. Ryou saw this and immediately face palmed, he was probably just as embarrassed as Yumi was at the moment. He and Yumi met eyes and he gave her a small wave as if to acknowledge her call, to which she returned the gesture.

"I guess we found a table…" Youko plainly said, looking at the odd Brightside of this embarrassment to Yumi. After Natsumi apologized to the customers, Yumi insisted on bowing in respect along with her, the three of them made their way to Ryou's table and the young man gave them a curt nod.

"Greetings Yumi-san..." Ryou said.

"Gokigenyo Ryou-san." Yumi returned the greeting. She then noticed that Youko and Ryou were looking at each other.

"Oh that's right! The two of you have never met." Yumi caught on and turned to Youko while motioning to Ryou.

"This is a friend of mine Youko-sama. His name is Miyamoto Ryou." Yumi introduced the young man. Youko smiled to him and he gave her a nod in acknowledgement.

"The Academy Head's nephew…" Youko mused. Yumi looked at her with surprise but Ryou didn't even flinch.

"And you must be Mizuno Youko, the previous Rosa Chinensis." Ryou replied. Yumi blinked a couple of time after that exchange.

"The two of you know each other?" Yumi asked them both. The two of them looked at Yumi then each other then back at Yumi.

"We don't really KNOW each other per say…Didn't I tell you that I heard about her from Aunt Kaori?" Ryou said, reminding Yumi how he came up with the idea of making Yumi ask for Youko's help.

"Ohhh…But how does Youko-sama know you?" She directed the question seemingly to both of them.

"She was Rosa Chinensis…I'd be amazed if she never knew about me sneaking around her turf…How she managed to find out considering how careful I've been…" The two of them then looked at the woman in question who just smiled.

"Anyway, you two better take a seat, much easier to have a conversation that way." Ryou said after shrugging and the two girls took his offer and sat beside each other across from him.

"So…" Ryou started while looking at Yumi.

"…you really asked for her help huh?" Ryou said while glancing at Youko.

"Yes. I really want Touko and Kanako to get along better and, thanks to your encouragement, I was able to properly ask Youko-sama for help." Yumi said a bit embarrassed because she thought that Ryou had bailed her out again.

"No problem. That's what friends do." Ryou mused. They then heard Youko give out an almost inaudible sigh. Youko noticed that the two were currently staring at her.

"Don't mind me." Youko said with a polite smile. She then leaned closer to Yumi.

"The two of you get along quite well..." she whispered to her junior, which made Yumi blush a bit.

"Well, friends usually do…" The both of them turned to Ryou who was giving them both a flat stare and Yumi gave a weak laugh while Youko expertly shrugged off Ryou's comment.

"That is true…" Youko mused. Yumi could feel the air thickening between Youko and Ryou.

_Why does he have to be at odds with Youko-sama too?_ Yumi thought before deciding to change the subject for now.

"So…ummm…what brings you here Ryou-san?" Yumi asked Ryou to get his attention away from her former Grand Soeur. Ryou looked at her and then looked around the establishment and smiled.

"That's why." Ryou replied while pointing to a waitress/maid who was walking their way with a tray that had some orders. Yumi and Youko looked at the maid. She was quite petite and had black hair that was tied into a bun. Her black eyes were sharp and somewhat comparable to Rei's.

"You're here…for the maids? I didn't know you liked that kind of thing." Yumi plainly asked. Youko giggled at Yumi's timely comedic jab while Ryou gave Yumi a look that clearly said 'WHAT?!'

"Wait what? No! Not the waitress you…" Ryou stopped his sentence dead since he was about to call Yumi anything from 'Idiot' to 'Retard'. He sighed when he thought at how comfortable he has become talking with Yumi that he has unconsciously started integrating his usual way of talking with his fellow Motor Club members with her.

"…I was talking about what she was carrying." Ryou said, recovering from his earlier stumble and just in time because the nameless waitress in question was standing in front of them. The maid reached for something on her tray and put it on the table. Ryou grinned while Yumi blinked a few times and Youko just remained impassive for the moment.

"Thank you for waiting master…"

_Master?!_ Yumi kind of panicked inwardly at the waitress' remark but quickly reminded herself that they were SUPPOSED to do that since that was the whole point of the café.

"…here is your order. Our special Vermillion Strawberry Sundae." The still unnamed maid said as if introducing a new product. Yumi eyed the sundae and saw that it was indeed 'vermillion' because it looked like a strawberry ice cream that was covered in strawberry syrup and was dotted with small strawberry bits.

"Thanks!" Ryou eagerly said before taking the whole thing in front of him and eyed it hungrily. The nameless maid then turned to the other two.

"Have you already had you orders Mistresses?" The maid politely regarded Yumi and Youko.

"No, not yet. I'll have the White Len Latte and she will have…" Youko regarded Yumi and paused for a moment. Yumi had a growing number of imaginary question marks over her head and was wondering why Youko was staring at her. But before she could ask why Youko was doing that, the former Red Rose looked at Ryou who had just taken his first bite of his sundae. The young man looked at Youko and as if the two of them has some sort of telepathic link…

"…She'll have a slice of Kohamocha Cake." Ryou finished Youko's statement.

"Good choice." Youko complimented Ryou, to which the young man merely shrugged and ate one of the strawberries on his sundae.

"An excellent choice. I will have your orders in a few minutes." The maid said before bowing to them and walking away. Yumi didn't know what was going on and showed it with her face while looking back and forth between Youko and Ryou. The two caught on and Youko decided to fill the poor girl in.

"The Kohamocha Cake is a Vanilla-Mocha Cake that is topped with Chocolate icing and a big strawberry." Youko explained. Yumi imagined what that cake might look and taste like and she gulped at the yummy prospect.

"The Kohamocha Cake is the best thing to serve to newcomers here…It has a nice balance of flavor and is not too sweet, pretty nice snack to have really." Ryou mused. Yumi nodded at each word and Youko smiled in agreement. Perhaps she is recalling a time when she had tasted that cake…one can't really say.

"While we are waiting for our order…" Youko said while looking at Yumi. Ryou mostly ignored them since he already knew what they were going to talk about anyway.

"…why don't you tell me the rest of your story?" Youko said and Yumi's face lit up immediately. For a half-second, Ryou could've sworn that he saw a glint coming from Yumi's direction.

"Alright! I've already told you how I got to know them so I'll start with Touko-chan's situation." Yumi happily said, 'laying out the battle lines' so to speak. Youko saw that Ryou was concentrating on savoring his Vermillion Strawberry Sundae and wasn't paying attention to them.

"Aren't you interested?" Youko asked the young man. Ryou looked up at them for a moment then plucked a strawberry from his sundae.

"I am…but I'm already up to speed on the current situation so I don't think I'll hear anything new." He said before eating the strawberry in his fingertips.

"I see…So you already know about all of this?" Youko actually directed the question to both her companions but Ryou merely shrugged at her query. He doesn't really warm up to the Red Roses other than Yumi huh? Probably because of his innate dislike of the members of elite society. Kinda makes you wonder how he and Sayoko became friends…

"Yes, he does. I asked him for help first but he said that he wasn't any good at these kinds of circumstances. He's the one who suggested that I ask you for help." Yumi explained, though Ryou flinched when Yumi said that he 'wasn't any good'. Youko pieced together what Yumi was giving her and eyed Ryou…then back to Yumi.

_Could he be the cause of Yumi's change?_ Youko postulated but discarded the idea due to the lack of facts. Youko knew how dangerous baseless assumptions can become and didn't want to go down that road especially with regards to Yumi.

"Alright, I understand…now please continue." Youko said and Yumi continued to explain the situation to Youko while Ryou sat there eating his sundae. Yumi managed to get to the part of the story where Touko told Yumi about her apparent liking for Kanako when the maid came back with their orders.

"Thank you for waiting mistresses…" The maid said and Yumi's story was suddenly put on hold due to the new arrival.

"…here are your orders. A White Len Latte…" The maid placed a cup of coffee that was topped with whipped cream and small piece of chocolate in the shape of a cat sat on the cream. Yumi thought that it was rather cute and almost a shame to consume.

"…and a Kohamocha Cake." The maid placed Yumi's order on the table and saw the cake in all its glory. It was every bit as what Youko described, a Vanilla-Mocha Cake that had chocolate icing and a large strawberry on top. Yumi looked at the strawberry and then at what Ryou was eating and thought that hers was bigger than the ones on his sundae.

"Thank you." Yumi turned to see Youko thanking the Maid/Waitress (Still nameless) and Yumi realized that she was too busy in admiring her cake that she hadn't thanked the waitress.

"Oh! Yes! Thank you very much!" And so she did, it usual Yumi fashion. The maid was startled at Yumi's sudden…thankfulness but was able to keep her poise, if barely so. Ryou didn't really bother to giver his input since he already had what HE wanted in this anyway while Youko just gave a soothing smile to calm down her junior.

"N..Not a problem. Please call upon any of us if you need anything else. Please enjoy…" The maid said in true polite fashion before once again bowing to them and walking off to do what she does.

"Now…where were we?" Youko asked before she scooped up some of the whipped cream and that chocolate cat with the teaspoon that came with her latte and ate it up. Yumi saw this unfold and could help but feel sorry for the tiny feline confection, so much so that she sighed in lamentation. This earned her wondering looks from both of her companions; one was finishing off the whipped cream of her drink while the other was half-way done with his sundae.

"Oh…Umm..Don't mind me…" Yumi played the whole thing off with a weak laugh and took a small piece of her cake with her fork and tasted it. If this was a cooking anime about some kid who wanted to make the ultimate Japanese bread and was animated by Sunrise and hence having a good share of Gundam references, Yumi would have several sparkles around her eyes and flowers would be blooming behind her and Beethoven's Ninth was playing in the background as if that cake was the most delicious thing she had ever tasted in her entire life.

"………….." Yumi was staring into nothingness after taking a bite from her cake, probably experiencing what the author described before, and was not moving an inch. Youko was calmly taking a sip of her latte as if she knew that Yumi would react like this and Ryou was almost done with his sundae and wasn't really paying attention to Yumi at the moment.

Ryou had managed to finally finish off his sundae while Youko was slowly savoring her latte but Yumi was still frozen on the spot. Ryou was licking the remainder of strawberry syrup on his spoon while looking at Yumi for any change, finding none; he put the spoon in the now empty glass and set it aside. Afterwards, he tapped the table with his finger in Youko's direction to get the older young woman's attention. Said 'older young woman' looked at him before setting her cup down on its saucer and looked at Ryou but did not say or do anything, this made Ryou have an imaginary vain pop up on his forehead but shrugged it off deciding that getting mad won't solve anything.

"Shouldn't we like…snap her out of it? Or at least make sure that she's still breathing…" Ryou said as joke but had some worry behind it. Youko looked at Yumi who was still unmoving and waved a hand in front of her eyes. Seeing as there was no response, she decided to do an alternate approach to the problem. Youko leaned in close to Yumi's ear and…

"Yumi-chan…Sachiko called me and she wants to speak with you." Youko whispered to her ear. And, as if Maria-sama herself smacked Yumi in the back of the head to wake her up, the girl blinked a few times and looked at her surroundings. She saw Ryou with his mouth slightly open with a look of disbelief and turned to Youko who had a knowing smile.

_Unbelievable…_Ryou thought. Whether that thought was due to the fact that Yumi snapped out of her daze in a heartbeat because of the mention of Sachiko's name or the fact that Youko knew EXACTLY what to say to Yumi to snap her out of her daze.

"What…happened?" Yumi asked as if she didn't know what was going on, chances are she really DIDN'T.

"Nothing important…how's the cake?" Ryou shifted the conversation toward the cause of the apparent silliness. Yumi looked at the cake and recalled the flavor which made her show a stupid looking smile and had a look of absolute contentment.

"I guess it was good…" Ryou surmised from her reaction. Yumi thankfully snapped out of her thoughts and nodded.

"Yes! It's amazing! Thank you for ordering it for me Ryou-san!" Yumi expressed her glee like a little girl who was just given a plushie of her favorite animal, giving Ryou one of her best smiles. Ryou, who had developed some tolerance to her smiles simply shrugged but looked away all the same since he still can't stand prolonged exposure to it…his creeping blush, was testament to that.

"No worries…anyway, shouldn't you be finishing up on your story?" Ryou said, changing the subject. Yumi nodded but quickly looked down on the cake. Doing so, she was torn between the emotional healing and dissolving of hostility between two of her closest juniors who very much needed that kind of help…and finishing her slice of cake, a tough choice for Yumi apparently. Ryou saw the odd dilemma that Yumi was having and couldn't stand it anymore.

"I'll tell her the rest…finish your cake if you want." Ryou proposed, much to the surprise of Yumi while Youko kept her ever present poker face.

"Ehh?! No! You don't have to…I'll…" Yumi was trying not to be any trouble to Ryou anymore but she didn't know that seeing her the way she was because of a slice of cake was more troublesome to the Nekomi student.

"Don't worry about it, I got this. Now, you were just gonna tell her pretty much what you told me right?" Ryou clarified in case Yumi decided to add some additional details. Yumi just nodded without saying a word, obviously still uncomfortable with the situation.

"Alright…just enjoy the cake…" Ryou told Yumi before turning to Youko who had a sly smile.

"What?" Ryou asked deadpanned though he already had a pretty good idea on what Youko was thinking or wanted to say.

"That was very sweet of you Miyamoto-san. I'm starting to think that I wouldn't mind having you date Yumi-chan considering how good a vibe the two of you have with each other." Youko mused and naturally earning her an OMG face from Yumi and a facepalm from Ryou.

"Whatever…think what you like, I don't care anymore. Back on topic though…" Ryou reverted from a bored expression to a serious one. Yumi recognized that look from when the young man gave her that little…pep-talk so to speak. Youko also noticed the change and saw that Ryou was being serious now and decided to give her full attention.

"This is second-hand information from Yumi-san so, if there are inconsistencies…" He looked at Yumi.

"…please correct them immediately." He said to Yumi and the young woman nodded in acknowledgement. Seeing as all of them were on the same page, Ryou started to explain Touko's developing feelings for Kanako as well as the tall girl's extreme dislike towards both men and Touko. As he was explaining, Ryou was also trying to develop an idea on how to get Kanako and Touko closer. But as he continued, Ryou still kept hitting walls that were there the first time he heard all of this from Yumi.

_The fact that they have been at each others' throats for half-of the year already makes this situation ridiculous. Given that they both seem to hold Yumi in high regard seem to be feeding this conflict as well, whether or not this was the original cause of their dislike for each other is negligible since Yumi-san by herself was not able to solve the problem. It's true that the game changed when Matsudaira-san admitted that she was starting to like Hosokawa-san but Yumi said that she was still unwilling to be anywhere alone with the other party and it is really doubtful that Hosokawa-san would ever say that she was starting to become fond of Matsudaira-san anytime soon. That being said, locking the two of them up in a room was not a good idea since they'll probably end up tearing each other apart._ Ryou reviewed the situation in his mind as he finished telling Youko what has happened thus far. After he looked at Yumi to confirm that he got everything right, which he did…Yumi already finished her cake by this time too, Youko took some time it deliberating the information that was given to her.

"Well…it's easy then…" Youko mused.

_You're kidding me right?!_ Ryou yelled out in his head.

"It is?" Yumi joined Ryou's wonderment, though vocally and a bit less…violently. Youko nodded while keeping her sly smirk that only she can do.

"The reason why they cannot reconcile with each other or at least try to understand each other is because they always see each other, or at the very least, Hosokawa-san sees Matsudaira-san as a threat." Youko explained.

"We know all of that…that's why Yumi's san has been having such a hard time with this and why I can't think of any way to solve it." Ryou countered. Youko did not deny Ryou's words and in fact nodded in agreement.

"Indeed, under normal circumstances, this problem would be near impossible to solve barring a miracle of sorts." Youko acknowledged Ryou's argument.

"Okay…so…tell us the magic bullet already." Ryou replied, both due to growing frustration as well as honest curiosity at what Youko may come up with.

"All we have to do is to have them do something together without making them feel like they were completely forced into it. Like Miyamoto-san said, this is a delicate situation as it is but there really is no magic bullet that will fix everything in one fell swoop. You need to take it slow but making sure that there is progress in their…relationship." Youko paused because she considered the irony in calling what Touko and Kanako had a 'relationship'. Yumi nodded to everything Youko said, probably trying her best to remember it all. Ryou just sat there through the whole thing without any real reaction, possible mulling through what Youko was telling them.

"That sounds…really hard to do…" Yumi pointed out the obvious. True enough, putting them in one place without them killing each other is one thing. Having them actually cooperate with each other in doing something is an entirely different issue.

"Ask Sachiko for help regarding how to do that if you still can't figure it out by the time you go back to school." Youko suggested. Ryou raised his eyebrow at Youko's suggestion but Yumi was more than happy to go along with that since she'll be working with Sachiko for the next phase. They all stayed in the café for a while longer doing small talk and was mostly catching up between Yumi and Youko while Ryou just listened through most of it but he saw how much Yumi was enjoying talking to Youko and the former Grand Soeur seemed to be enjoying it as well though she was less expressive about it.

_How she gets along with her and Ogasawara-san so well…_Ryou's thoughts trailed off when he looked at Yumi again and the younger girl was giggling at a joke Youko made.

_Well…whatever makes her smile like that…_Ryou inwardly smiled with what he was thinking staring at Yumi. He never noticed that Youko was glancing at him at the time and saw him staring at Yumi though all Youko did about it was to smile a bit more so Yumi thought that she was smiling along with her.

...

They finally exited the café after a while longer and were about to go their separate ways. Yumi was obviously heading back home to try to figure out a good plan to build on what was given to her while Youko was also going home for some rest and to tie up some loose ends in her schoolwork and Ryou…

"You're not heading home?" Yumi asked.

"No, not yet…I wanna check out something in Akiba first." Ryou explained.

_That's in the opposite direction…_Yumi thought, she felt disappointed but wasn't sure why.

"Oh…then we'll use different trains then…" Yumi mused.

"Pretty much…kind of a drag since I also have the choice of just walking back to my apartment and call it a day…No…I want to confirm something first." Ryou said the last part to himself as if arguing with his inner self. All of them went in the station but Yumi was going on the train bound in the opposite direction Ryou and Youko were bound for.

"So we're gonna be on the same train huh?" Ryou said to Youko while they were walking up the stairs on their way to the platform.

"Why? Did you want to be with Yumi instead?" Youko coyly joked.

"Very funny…" Ryou deadpanned. They made it up and saw Yumi on the opposite side. The young woman smiled and waved to them and they naturally returned the gesture.

"You'd think she didn't have a care in the world…" Ryou mused.

"That's who Yumi is…that girl is much stronger that she sees herself to be. Certainly much stronger that I was a few years ago." Youko added but Ryou said nothing in reply. Yumi's train arrived first and the two of them waved her off and sat down on a bench while waiting for their own train to arrive.

"You talk like an old maid sometimes…" Ryou suddenly said. Youko surmised that it was due to her earlier comment.

"And you don't pull any punches…" Youko retorted, to which Ryou gave a weak snicker.

"But…you're right. Yumi-san has a strong heart; it'd be a waste if she doesn't realize that." Ryou continued talking about Yumi.

…_Same goes for Yuuki…_He added in his mind.

"She will…" Youko knowingly said out loud, earning her a raised eyebrow.

"You seem confident." Ryou said, the sound of the train approaching made them both look at the direction that it will come from.

"Of course…she had Sachiko, the rest of the Yamayurikai…" Youko said as she stood up to get ready to board the train. Ryou did the same but noticed that Youko stopped in front of him and turned to look at him.

"And she has you too…" She sincerely said though Ryou was wondering how much of that was an honest statement and how much was just teasing. Regardless, it still managed to make Ryou's face turn red. The two of them got on the train and sat down. Ryou noted that there weren't a lot of people at the time because it was a Sunday. While their train was going along its journey, the two of them just stayed silent because Ryou was trying to figure out as to why Youko told Yumi to ask Sachiko for help in putting the idea she gave into action.

"Why?" Ryou thought out loud. Youko looked at him like she had just been asked a question even though she hadn't.

"Why what?" Youko threw the question back at him.

"Why did you tell Yumi-san to ask Ogasawara-san for further help? You could have given her a solid plan on how to deal with this on the spot. I know that you are more than capable of doing that much. Youko just sighed like she had originally expected Ryou to understand her plan all along.

"I guess you still don't know how Yumi-chan's heart works…" She said as if feigning disappointment and Ryou just responded with a crude grunt.

"If I had told Yumi a plan on how to get her two juniors together in the café, I would be essentially making Yumi execute that plan on her own. I think you know how that would turn out." Youko lead Ryou on, making him fill in the blanks.

"Yumi-san can set up the whole thing properly if given the right chances but in the end would probably choke at the last moment and expose the whole thing to those two. Worse case scenario that will become of this is that the hostility between them would increase even further and they might even turn on Yumi-san." Ryou gave his opinion on the outcome of that route.

"Exactly…" Youko acknowledged Ryou's hypothesis.

"And that is the reason why I couldn't figure out a way to do this properly without everything blowing up in Yumi-san's face." Ryou replied, his frustration growing.

"That is because you only factored in Yum-chan…If Sachiko is the one who formulates the plan proper then she would make Yumi's well being the utmost priority…" Youko started to explain and Ryou listened intently on where this was going.

"…I know how Sachiko thinks and she will do whatever it takes to make sure her plan does not fail. That being said she will most likely play a major part in the whole thing. She will act as Yumi's anchor as well as a deterrent for any conflict that may erupt between those two…" Youko continued.

"Because they sure as hell won't be as brazen as to cross Ogasawara-san…" Ryou reasoned and Youko nodded.

"…Yes, but to clear the requirement of having them cooperate of their own will, Yumi will be the main device in facilitating that..." Youko trailed off, once again making Ryou think up of the reason why.

"That is because of their fondness of Yumi-san…They won't do anything to visibly worry Yumi-san…and that would turn the deterrence against anything nasty happening into a two-fold defense." Ryou went wide-eyed at the realization.

"Indeed, Sachiko will give Yumi-chan confidence as well as keeping those two in check while Yumi does her magic and brings them closer together…whether she realizes it or not." Youko finished her argument.

_Akihabara…Akihabara…_The PA system of the train called out. It was Ryou's stop. The young man stood as the train slowed to a halt.

"You are one scary woman…" He said before walking off, he didn't look back so he never saw Youko's signature smirk that pretty much said 'Just as planned'.

...

Just some tidbits for those who may have not understood some things in this chapter:

-The reason why Ryou had a negative response and why he compared Touko and Kanako's situation to Kamen Rider Kiva was because that show had the most complicated romance situation of any Kamen Rider show. So much so that it overshadowed the Kamen Rider Aspect of the show itself.

-The Kamen Rider Show that was supposed to preview on the time when Ryou and Yumi were talking about the situation with Touko and Kanako was Kamen Rider Decade, the latest Kamen Rider show that started late January 09.

-Kamen Rider Super-1 that was on Ryou's shirt on the day they went to the cafe is one of the old school riders and the first kamen rider to acively operate in space.

-Ryou's Sunday's were usually busy because of Motor Club Meetings. Which is why he didn't know what to do when he suddenly had some free time.

-Yumi and Youko's attire were mainly taken from fanart I snagged off the interwebs...worksafe ones of course.

-The name of the cafe they went to, Atlasia, was taken from the name of a character from the doujin fighting game Melty Blood. The name was from Sion Eltam Atlasia, an Alchemist who also happened to be a Vampire.

-The Idea for the maid uniforms mainly came from Wilhelmina Carmen's (Shakugan no Shana) maid outfit.

-The nickname of Hikari Natsumi was taken from the main female lead from Kamen Rider Decade of the same name. Her nickname was also Natsumikan, though she looked nothing like the maid.

-Youko found out about Ryou's visits to the Academy Head's office because she too goes there for meetings and tea.

-The names of the dishes in the cafe are also from Melty Blood:

-Vermillion Strawberry Sundae came from the name of Tohno Akiha who's alter-ego was named Akiha Vermillion because her normally black hair turns into blood red. Yes, Ryou LOOOOOVES anything with strawberries.

-White Len Latte is named after a character named White Len. A little Succubus Cat-Girl (not kidding) who wears all white.

-Kohamocha Cake was named after a maid in the same game named Kohaku. The flavor was mirrored after her attire, a brown kimono that had a red sash and was covered with a white apron.

-The cooking anime I pointed out was Yakitate Japan. An anime about a teen who wanted to make a national bread for japan. Great show, and as stated, plenty of Gundam references.

-Ryou doesn't feel comfortable with Youko because he feels the same aura of superiority from her as with Sachiko, if not worse.

Please R&R and bounce back any concerns and possible inconsistencies with the other chapters or A&R. YOUR INPUT HELPS!


	12. Chapter 12

**Author's Notes: **AAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNDD I'm back! Wow...it feels like forever since I've updated. I personally blame Battle Moon Wars: Perfect Edition's release, Work, Kamen Rider Decade, K-on and Katawa Shoujo. Anyway! Here is chapter 12 of Rosebud and I will start on the very first proper chapter of Everdistant now! YAY! Well, enjoy this chapter for now!

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything in this fic that can be used against me in a court of law.**

...

_All we have to do is to have them do something together without making them feel like they were completely forced into it._

Yumi spent the whole evening locked up in her room trying to figure out a way on how to build on what Youko told her but once again, she hits dead ends in all of her prospects. Yumi had hoped that she wouldn't have to be forced to ask Sachiko for help on this since she thought that her Onee-sama had other things to worry about, the School Festival among them. Yumi sat down on her bed in a very depressed mood, the fact that her lights were off didn't help either. She looked at her clock and saw that it was already past midnight. She had just spent four hours drawing up blanks and that wasn't helping her confidence in any way, shape or form. Her eyes drifted to her desk that had a copy of the script to their play for the school festival.

…_wait…_

Yumi shot up from her bed and her complexion paled as well.

"The play…I forgot to practice my lines…" Yumi grimly said while reaching out to the script with a trembling hand. She had completely forgotten the fact that they had formal practice starting tomorrow, sucks that she's one of the main characters huh? The poor girl plopped on her bed and covered her face with the open manuscript.

"I'm doomed…" was the last thing Yumi said before she finally passed out from mental exhaustion.

…

The next morning, Ryou was already up and about at 4 in the morning. The reason being was that he had to print out a report that he needed to submit later on in the afternoon, problem being that he didn't have a printer. He has a laptop that his mom got him for his birthday last year and that HAS made his life a whole lot easier since in regards to reports and write-ups but, lacking a printer, he's had to come up with…inspired ways to print out his reports…especially in pressure situations. The method this time? Get to school really early and ambush one of his professors and ask (read: beg on hands and knees) him/her to print out his report.

"Beautiful!" Ryou said before clicking on 'save' to finalize his report and quickly took out the portable USB thumb drive from his laptop and put it in his pocket. That thumb drive was actually the reason he went to Akihabara yesterday, he had to find a way to get his files to school without having to rely of big and easy to break floppy disks. He turned off his laptop and exited his apartment after finishing his final preparations for school. He looked at the sun starting to rise beyond the cityscape and his mind drifted to his conversation with Youko before.

She had thought of the best way to get the highest probability of success and the highest return with the least amount of risk. He had to hand it to Youko, he never would have thought of using Sachiko in any of his previous plans and when he did, it was a whole new ballgame. And the fact that Youko managed to figure everything out in the span it took him to explain the problem was even more impressive.

_Calculating busybody…_He thought before setting off for school.

…

Yumi came in to class half-dead like she usually does whenever she had mulled over something for too long. Not only did she convince herself to solve the issue between Touko and Kanako but she also had to have enough steam left to practice her lines for the play, neither of which was accomplished if you were paying attention to what you were reading. She was in a daze when she prayed at the Mary statue and didn't even remember what it was she prayed for.

_I should have prayed for Maria-sama's help too…_she thought as she opened the door to the classroom. Surprisingly, the anticipated assault from Mami and Tsutako never cam and she looked around to find that they weren't there yet. She quickly spotted Yoshino though and headed straight to her friend.

"Gokigenyo Youshino-san." Yumi greeted in a slightly tired voice. Yoshino looked up to her friend and smiled, evidently glad to see her.

"Gokigenyo Yumi-san…" Yoshino greeted but her expression suddenly changed to a worried one.

"…what's wrong? You look awful." Yoshino finally pointed out Yumi's current condition. She had hoped that no one would notice even though everyone in her family did. Yoshino pointed out that Yumi had a very tired look on her face. Yumi's usual cheeriness notwithstanding, she still had stress marks around her eyes clearly showing that she had been…well…stressed.

"Oh…It's because I spent the whole night going over…the script for the play." Yumi paused since she didn't want anyone else to find out about the thing between Kanako and Touko…Yoshino included since if she finds out then there is a good chance that…

Snap!Snap!Snap! Went the all-too-familiar shutter sound of Tsutako's camera. Yumi hesitantly turned around and saw the duo of Mami and Tsutako hovering their favorite topic: Yumi.

"Whoa! What happened Yumi-san?" Tsutako asked, finally lowering her camera. Mami didn't say anything but had her trusty notepad in hand, ready for Yumi's response.

"Oh! I just stayed up too late going over the script for the play…I was so into it that I didn't realize what time it was." Yumi replied, doing everything she can mentally not to give away any inkling that she was lying.

"Oh…" Tsutako said while looking closely at Yumi, making the girl feel a bit more uncomfortable. Her reason made sense but, being as intrepid as she was, was trying to make sure that Yumi wasn't trying to pull a fast one on her.

_Yumi-san? Pulling the wool over my eyes?_ Tsutako reviewed just how ridiculous that sounded, this was Fukuzawa Yumi afterall, and concluded that she was telling the truth.

"…you really shouldn't push yourself so much Yumi-san. You're no good if you pass out during the play." Tsutako warned Yumi about the dangers of overexerting, which Yumi already knew quite well thinking back to the graduation preparations for the previous Roses and their batchmates.

"Umm..yeah…I'll do my best!" Yumi said apprehensively while weakly pumping her fist up to emphasize her point.

_They actually bought it!_ Yumi thought triumphantly but was conscious enough not to show it on her face this time.

"What's wrong with Mami-san? Why is Tsutako-san asking all the questions?" Yoshino pointed out from her seat. Yumi had a 'That's Right!' face which was all the reaction needed to get her point across to her friends. They got their answer when Mami weakly smiled at them and held her throat while opening her mouth, not a peep came out.

"…so you can't talk because you throat hurts huh?" Yoshino caught on quite quickly with just Mami's gesture. Yumi looked back and forth between her friends since she wasn't as fast as Yoshino on picking up subtle hints…not that anyone should think that what Mami did was subtle.

"Really? Is that true?" Yumi finally said, her supposed fatigue long since forgotten. Her three friends looked at her with surprised expressions.

"What?" Yumi asked, once again oblivious to the whole thing.

"Nevermind…" Yoshino deadpanned. Mami and Tsutako looked at each other and smiled at Yumi. If the Rosa Chinensis En Bouton found out the real reason why Mami ended up that way, she would have stormed out of the classroom in a second…but that's a different story.

…

The rest on the morning went as normal. Yumi managed to shake off her sleepiness by the end of morning classes. As soon as lunch break started, Yumi scurried off to the Rose Mansion where Sachiko was most likely to be. Her friends didn't even get the chance to invite her to join them for lunch. She got to the quaint little structure and headed up the stairs and noticed that the door was ajar.

"Someone is already here? I hope its Onee-sama…" Yumi whispered to herself before carefully opening the door. Good news was Sachiko was indeed inside. Bad news was that she was clutching her heart while her face was all contorted like she was having a heart attack.

"Onee-sama!" Yumi yelled out in panic while barging into the room. Sachiko was completely surprised at Yumi's sudden arrival that she just stood there, her hand was still on her heart and she was slouching a little.

"…Yumi?" Sachiko asked to make sure that she wasn't hallucinating or anything. She got her answer when Yumi set her bentou down and quickly walked up to Sachiko and held her Onee-sama's free hand while placing her other hand on Sachiko's back.

"Are you alright? What happened? Maybe we should go to the Nurse's Office..." Yumi babbled on with increasingly more serious suggestions on what they should do, most of which were not even understood by Sachiko. Yumi's blabbering was quickly silenced when Sachiko squeezed her hand to get the panicking girl's attention.

"I'm…fine Yumi…" Sachiko said while doing her best to smile. Unconvinced of course, Yumi led her to at least sit down on one of the chairs. Yumi also sat down beside Sachiko but never let go of her hand, her other hand was on the older girl's shoulder.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Yumi asked, again, a very worried expression was plastered on her face. Sachiko calmed her down by placing her hand on Yumi's that was holding her other hand.

"I'm fine…I just recalled something…sad…" She said while looking her Yumi's hand nestled between her own hands.

"…that's all." She finished her sentence and looked up at Yumi with a warm smile.

"Something…sad…?" Yumi hesitantly asked, her heart was going out for her Onee-sama since she was experiencing something like that.

"Yes…can we…not talk about it Yumi? Not now at least…" Sachiko asked in a subdued voice. Yumi understood and solemnly nodded. She waited for Sachiko to calm down before the two of them began eating their respective lunches. An odd silence swallowed the Red Roses as they ate, Yumi was getting rather uncomfortable at the current mood and unconsciously started fidgeting in her seat.

"I went to Touko-chan's yesterday…" Sachiko mentioned while eating her lunch. This made Yumi flinch in her seat, whether Sachiko noticed it was unknown but Yumi knew that it was only a matter of time before Sachiko went off to find out what was up with Touko. One might think that this was a blessing in disguise since she needed Sachiko's help anyway…but that thought didn't help Yumi relax at all.

"Oh…really…a casual visit?" Yumi asked, doing her best to feign ignorance in the matter. Sachiko looked at Yumi flatly that showed her that lying at this point was useless.

"No…I went there to talk to her about what was happening to her lately." Sachiko said seriously, Yumi gulped at the way she said it.

"So Touko-chan told you about her situation huh?" Yumi asked Sachiko. Part of her was glad that she didn't have to explain the whole thing all over again but part of her was also afraid that Sachiko might take offence in Yumi keeping her in the dark like that.

"Yes. I went to confront her yesterday about why she was acting so strange for the past few days..." Sachiko replied while continuing her lunch.

_Confront? I hope she didn't do anything drastic..._ Yumi thought, trying her best not to think of the worst case scenario of what Sachiko might have done.

"So..." Yumi started while glancing at Sachiko and poking the rice in her bentou.

"…what did you do after you found out?" She meekly asked. Sachiko raised her right hand telling Yumi to wait for her to swallow her food first.

"Of course I asked her how that was possible since they were usually at each other's throats." Sachiko really needs to get out more often…or at least watch more anime or something.

_Onee-sama…even I know that there is something known as 'Tsundere'._ Yumi thought as she kind of felt sorry for Sachiko who was somewhat out of touch with the way modern Japan works and didn't even know one of the most well known Japanese slangs of their generation.

"Well...I tried to ask some advice from someone about how to deal with what's been happening..." Yumi shook off the silly remark in her head and got back on topic.

"Advice? From who? Your Mother?" Sachiko asked, going into interrogation mode.

"No...From Youko-sama." Yumi casually said, she left out the part about Ryou since she thought it might cause even more unwanted tension between her seemingly-only-close-male-friend and Sachiko.

"Onee-sama? You met with Onee-sama?" Sachiko asked with an uncharacteristic hint of surprise in her voice.

"Yes...I told her about the situation and asked her on the best way to get Touko-chan and Kanako-chan closer to each other...to at least dissolve Kanako's hate for Touko-chan" Yumi replied while recalling her meeting yesterday with Youko and, unexpectedly, Ryou.

"And...?" Sachiko urged Yumi to continue.

"She said that subtlety is the key. To set up situations where they could bond without making to seem that they were forced together...Of course, that's much easier said than done." Yumi sighed for good reason since all the ideas she had thought up before will only end up making things worse in the end.

Nothing else was said during lunch. Yumi glanced at Sachiko every now and then and saw that her Onee-sama was quietly eating her lunch and showed no emotion but she has known Sachiko long enough to see that she was thinking…hard. After they had finished eating, they made their way back to the school building. They were walking along when Sachiko suddenly stopped. Yumi looked back in wonderment on what happened.

"Onee-sama?" Yumi asked. She nearly gasped when she saw Sachiko give the same smile Youko had when she figured out what idea to give her.

"I think I may have an idea." Sachiko said with a faint smile.

"Eeeehh?!" Yumi exclaimed.

_That was fast…Onee-sama already has a solution for this?_ Yumi thought in obvious surprise. She saw Sachiko walk closer while keeping her Youko-grade smile.

"I have an idea that can help Touko-chan and Kanako-chan and…" Sachiko started while placing her hand on Yumi's shoulder.

"…will also help you in the play as well." Sachiko finished, though cryptically, giving Yumi an idea of her…idea.

"Eh? What do you mean help Touko-chan, Kanako-chan AND me?" Yumi asked in need of immediate clarification. Sachiko smiled warmly at Yumi as she knew that this plan would work.

"Well, you see…"

…

_So that's how it'll be huh?_ Yumi thought about what Sachiko had planned for her two juniors AND herself. The plan was to have Kanako and Touko have time to interact with each other under the guise of helping Yumi with her acting for the play though…

"Yumi-san! Yumi-san!" Yoshino's voice snapped the En Bouton out of her thoughts and she unconsciously blinked a few times while looking around. It was she saw her Onee-sama's slightly irritated face that she remembered that they were currently in the middle of practice. She looked at Yoshino with a confused expression, again, feel free to add imaginary question marks over her head.

"Your lines!" the other En Bouton yelled. At those words, Yumi suddenly realized that everyone was looking at her with various expressions of wonderment, worry, and a couple of irritated ones as well.

"I'm so sorry for spacing out like that everyone!" Yumi quickly apologized for screwing up the practice.

"Nevermind, let us continue to the scene with Shimako-chan next." Sachiko shrugged off Yumi's slipup and decided to get the rest of the practice going. Yumi slumped off to the far side of the gym where they were holding their practices and decided to sulk there so she wouldn't bother anyone. She was soon no longer alone when Kanako walked over to her, probably to check upon her.

"Yumi-sama…are you alright?" Kanako voiced her concern. Yumi visibly flinched since she was currently face to face with one of the two people that she, and a few others, are plotting against…well, maybe not _against_ but you get the idea.

"Yes…I'm quite alright. Just a bit…nervous." Yumi said, meaning it in more ways than one. Kanako saw her uneasiness but dismissed it as stage fright for the play.

"Well, if you say so Yumi-sama…" Kanako said, seemingly convinced, before turning to leave but Yumi reached out and grabbed her hand. The taller girl was caught by surprise and looked back to Yumi who had a rather uneasy expression.

"Yumi-sama?" Kanako regarded her _idol_.

"Umm…Actually, I want to talk to you about something Kanako-chan, something important." Yumi replied. Kanako eased up and stood in front of Yumi to hear the rose out.

"Alright Yumi-sama, what is this about?" Kanako asked. Yumi looked around the gym, as if making sure that no one else was listening at the moment. That move made Kanako looked around as well out of curiosity.

_Does Yumi-sama not want someone to know about what she is about to tell me?_ Kanako thought while looking around. She looked back at Yumi who had a rarely shown serious expression.

"Not here…can you meet me at the greenhouse after practice?" Yumi said in the same seriousness. Kanako was starting to become visibly worried since she had never really seen Yumi this serious before, even when she had confronted the Rosa Chinensis En Bouton in the very same greenhouse back during summer. Though rather misplaced, Yumi's seriousness in convincing Kanako to go to the greenhouse with her with no questions asked was actually working.

"Well…yes…of course Yumi-sama." Kanako took the whole thing hook, line, and sinker.

"That's great! I'll be waiting there okay!" As if a light switch was flipped, Yumi suddenly reverted back to her usual cheery self and walked off to the others who were still practicing, Kanako in tow of course.

…

Practice ended with no major incidents though they were a bit behind schedule because of a few minor inconveniences (Fukuzawa Siblings). Most other roses went about their way in wrapping up practice. Rei took charge of cleaning up the things they had used in the Gym while Yoshino and the white roses escorted the Hanadera Council to the gate. That just leaves the reds.

Kanako managed to slip out of the unnoticed by anyone else and headed to the greenhouse immediately, anyone's guess on what Touko was doing at the moment while this was all happening.

"Do you think this will work Onee-sama?" Yumi asked Sachiko who was standing beside her in the greenhouse. Sachiko's answer was subtle but powerful to Yumi because the grand rose simple held her hand and smiled, that was all the convincing Yumi needed. They turned to the door when they head it creak open, standing there with a less than pleased look was Hosokawa Kanako.

"Rosa Chinensis…" Kanako said softly, voicing out her reason for feeling uneasy. Yumi was not as sharp as to pick up Kanako's subtle hint of dislike towards Sachiko and does what she does best.

"Kanako-chan!" Yumi yelled out at the sight of Kanako, making the tall girl smile…for a moment before she made a small frown when Sachiko approached her.

_Please don't scare her too much Onee-sama…_Yumi mentally pleaded when she saw Kanako's subtle distress at the oncoming Rosa Chinensis. Sachiko smiled at Kanako and placed a hand on her shoulder. Yumi would be melting on the spot if she was on the receiving end of that but Kanako had no such plans to do likewise.

"Hosokawa-san...I need a favor..." Sachiko said in a Youko-esque way. Yumi was starting to get nervous as well since Kanako hasn't said a word yet. The last thing Yumi wanted was a standoff between her Onee-sama and her junior. Sachiko, on her part, was never really one who backs down…especially from a younger student.

"You see Hosokawa-san. The festival is drawing near and we are...less than prepared for the play." Sachiko plainly said without batting an eye. She then removed her hand from Kanako's shoulder and walked over to Yumi's side.

"And what does that have to do with me?" Kanako voiced her distaste of Sachiko talking her down like that. Even Yumi noticed the thickening atmosphere in the greenhouse (and it wasn't because of the humidity either) while Sachiko stood her ground and kept her smile. Yumi had enough and decided to interject before anything else could happen. She stepped forward and gave Kanako a warm smile that said 'Take it easy'.

"Well...to be honest, I'm really not confident that I can pull off this performance so I asked Onee-sama if I could have some extra practice time for my lines but there's a small problem." Yumi explained while playing the part of 'Tragic Heroine'. This caught Kanako by surprise and all her defenses crumbled in front of the saddened visage of Yumi.

"A problem?" Kanako asked, finally interested in the situation. Sachiko stayed silent for the moment and let Yumi work her magic on the tall girl.

"Yes...the problem is that I don't have anyone to practice my lines with. Onee-sama is busy with other preparations for the festival and so are the rest of the Yamayurikai." Yumi said pleadingly to Kanako, who was seemingly buying it. And Yumi's supposed to suck at acting too!

"What about your...brother...?" Kanako asked. Even Yumi was able to detect the noticeable strain in Kanako's voice at the mention of a man's name.

"Well...Yuuki has his own things to worry about with the Hanadera Student Council and all...so..." Yumi stuttered because of the rather unexpected suggestion by Kanako to practice with Yuuki instead of her. However, from Kanako's perspective, it just seemed that Yumi's stuttering was just her usual nervousness during times when she was a bit stressed.

"You want me to help you with your lines Yumi-sama?" Kanako asked. Yumi was very happy that Kanako caught onto her intentions so quickly and she nodded several times to emphasize her happiness.

"Yes! That would be great Kanako-chan...but...aren't you busy with anything?" Yumi asked the natural question. The plan will all be for nothing if Kanako has something else she needs to do during that day. Yumi got her answer when Kanako gave her the best smile the tall girl could possibly give that day.

"Not at all Yumi-sama. When and where should we begin?" Kanako replied. She was starting to really like to idea of practicing for the play with Yumi.

"Ummm...are you free this Sunday? I want to practice as soon as possible." Yumi asked, making absolutely sure that Kanako can go.

"Yes...I am not doing anything in particular during Sundays. Will we practice here in school?" Kanako replied and thus triggering the most delicate part of convincing the tall girl.

"...Actually." Yumi turned to Sachiko for the setup of the finisher. Sachiko, without missing a beat, walked forward.

"The practice will be held at MY home Hosokawa-san." Sachiko said with a double-edged smile, though Kanako may have been the only one who got the other side of that subtle gesture.

"Oh...I see." Kanako replied, even through her happiness on spending time with Yumi was almost spoiled by Sachiko's presence during that…almost.

"I will send a car to pick you up and you will be taken directly to my house. Is 10 am an acceptable time for you?" Sachiko pressed the attack, not letting Kanako a chance to rebuke even though the tall girl was dead-set on helping Yumi with the play anyway.

"Yes...It will be fine." Kanako replied, albeit defensively.

"Good…" Sachiko said before turning to Yumi who was just relishing the whole thing.

"…aren't you glad that she agreed Yumi-chan?" Sachiko asked, rhetorical as it may have been.

"I sure am!" The Rosa Chinensis En Bouton replied anyway. They didn't realize that Kanako had a 'I have a bad feeling about this' face.

…

Kanako parted from the roses at the main gate of the school and the two reds made their way to the train station where they themselves must part. Yumi waved farewell to Sachiko and started to walk towards the station but stopped soon after. Sachiko wondered if Yumi had forgotten something. The younger girl turned around and walked back to Sachiko with a troubled expression.

"Yumi?" Sachiko voiced her concern. Yumi fidgeted in place because she wasn't sure if he needed to tell Sachiko about her worry.

"About what we are about to do…to Touko-chan and Kanako-chan…I…" Yumi's resolve was starting to buckle since she really wasn't the type to scheme against other people in the first place and that naturally came back to bite her. As Ryou had originally expected, Yumi would eventually break down in the midst of executing her plan because of her gentleness.

Sachiko came forward and placed her hand on the cheek of her almost-crying Soeur, making the girl look up into the gentle eyes of her Onee-sama.

On the other hand, as Youko predicted, Sachiko would be Yumi's anchor…her source of courage and resolve, Youko was right.

"Yumi…do you believe in yourself?" Sachiko asked. Yumi's response was to look away from her gaze as if she was guilty of something. Sachiko guided Yumi's face with her hand so she was looking at her again.

"Let's change the question then…do you believe in me Yumi?" Sachiko asked again. This time Yumi gave her a quiet nod but still averted her eyes from, what the younger girl saw at the moment as, a piercing gaze. Sachiko then responded by placing her hands on the girl's shoulders and giving her a stern and determined look. Yumi was starting to get worried that Sachiko may have become tired of her weakness at critical times just like Ryou did but…

"Well I believe in you Yumi…" Sachiko said with all the conviction that she can muster. Yumi was surprised at the seriousness of Sachiko's voice when she told her that. She could feel herself starting to shake, what for…she was not sure.

"If you cannot believe in yourself then believe in me instead…" Sachiko's seriousness faded away and was replaced by her normal, calm expression.

"Believe in me…who believes in you…" Sachiko plainly said before letting Yumi go.

_Why? Why does everyone need to support me so? Why can't I take care of something by myself?_ Yumi thought, her self loathing pushing her to tears.

"Yumi? What's wrong? Tell me." Sachiko said, herself starting to feel a bit vulnerable as well.

"……It's so……frustrating…" Yumi said between sobs, Sachiko had a powerful urge to embrace Yumi but knew that the girl needed to let this out so she waited for Yumi to finish.

"Everyone…I always have to…rely on everyone…even though…even though I promised…" Yumi's breathing started to clam down, her tears ceasing.

"…Even though I promised Ryou-san that I would try my best and…" Yumi said, recalling Ryou's somewhat…unorthodox way of telling her to do her best. Sachiko felt a slight pang in her heart at what was just said.

_So Yumi and Miyamoto-san have been…meeting each other?_ Sachiko thought but quickly let the notion go as there was more pressing matters to attend to.

"And you are Yumi. You have nothing to be disappointed in. Even the best of us have such uncertainties at times as well." Sachiko did her best to sooth Yumi. There was of course some truth in what she just said. Yumi sniffled a few more times before wiping the last of her tears with her handkerchief.

"Thank you Onee-sama…I wouldn't know what to do without you." Yumi readily admitted in pure relief, much to Sachiko's satisfaction.

"But…how are we going to convince Touko-chan?" Yumi asked the natural question. Getting Kanako to agree was one thing but Touko was a different story.

"Don't worry about Touko-chan. I'll take care of it." Sachiko said. Yumi was confident in her Onee-sama's ability to get Touko into this so she decided not to think about it anymore and trust in Sachiko.

"Alright…I'll leave it to you then." Yumi said before bowing to Sachiko and going off into the station.

_I believe in you Onee-sama_

…

"What manner of sorcery is this…?" Ryou said in surprise and annoyance when he entered the office of his aunt for a long overdue visit and he got a little something extra as well.

"What a coincidence…" A knowing, confident and frustratingly familiar voice said before setting her cup of Jasmine Tea on the table.

"I did not expect to meet you again so soon Miyamoto-san." said the Former Rosa Chinensis Mizuno Youko. Ryou wasn't at all amused or glad to see Youko again though the reason why that was the case eludes him. Chalk it up to his inferiority complex against people who he considers part of the 'elite'. He looked at his aunt who easily read his expression and offered him a seat beside Youko.

"Mizuno-san dropped by the school, and since it had been so long since we last chatted, I offered the girl some tea." Kaori said while preparing a cup of tea for Ryou.

"That isn't a problem now is it Ryou?" Kaori asked her nephew, who froze mid-way into sitting down.

"Of…course…not…" He said in an uncomfortable voice before sitting down completely beside Youko on the sofa. There was a strangely calm and somewhat tense moment on silence as Kaori prepared Ryou's tea. Youko was sitting quietly beside Ryou while drinking her tea and really not paying any mind to the young man and Ryou…he just chose not to look at Youko at all.

"Here you go." Kaori said while handing Ryou a cup of tea.

"Thanks…" He said, taking the tea and its saucer in his hands. Again, an odd and somewhat awkward silence washed over the room. Kaori can notice the tension his nephew had while sitting beside Youko and this amused the nun to no end, she always enjoyed seeing Ryou's other sides as well.

"So…I take it that the two of you have met before." Kaori said, more as a statement than a question. She was taking a casual sip of her tea, Youko doing the same…Ryou nearly spat out his.

"My…are you alright Miyamoto-san?" Youko asked, feigning ignorance to which the young man just glared at her.

"And what brings my nephew here after so long?" Kaori decided to end her poor nephew's misery and go about more casual talk, along with Youko of course. He finally got a decent sip of his tea before replying.

"I came around BECAUSE it's been so long. I didn't want you to think that I'd forgotten about you." Ryou said as a bit of a joke, laughing a bit for effect.

"You have such a kind nephew Kaori-sama., you must be very proud." Youko said with her eyes closed.

_Not very convincing coming from you…_Ryou thought instead of saying it outright. Youko was baiting him, he knew that much. He wasn't about to play by her tune any time soon.

"Why yes I am." Kaori replied, seemingly to humor the former Red Rose. Suddenly, the Nekomi student started to doubt the wisdom of visiting his aunt today.

"The school festival is coming soon. Will the two of you be attending?" Kaori asked to both of her guests.

"Why yes. I plan to attend along with Sei. It has been quite some time since I last walked around freely in the school grounds." Youko fondly said like a homesick child who has been away for too long. Ryou sensed the sincerity in her statement and even he can appreciate that much from her.

"And you?" Kaori turned to her nephew. Ryou blinked a few times and looked down at the cup of tea in his hand, a sad smile draped across his face.

"Nah…I'll be heading home that time…" Ryou said in rare melancholy. Youko noticed the stark change in his tone of voice and wondered why the sudden change from the young man.

"I…want to visit dad's grave this year…" He muttered before taking in the rest of the Jasmine Tea in one gulp. He then put the cup and its saucer on the table and stood up while picking up his bag.

"I'll be heading out now…" Ryou said before starting for the door.

"Stay out of trouble." Kaori said in a caring voice. Ryou replied with a simple nod before exiting the office. There was a heavy silence in the room after Ryou left. Youko chose not to say anything during this time out of respect for Ryou but she was still curious about his change in personality because he mentioned something about visiting his father's grave.

_He must have loved his father very dearly…_was the initial conclusion that she came to but then she recalled Sachiko's relationship with her own father.

_Or he may have hated him with a passion…_was the alternate conclusion she came to, though she hoped that the former was the real reason.

"It's been five years…" Kaori said, finally breaking the silence. She sat down beside Youko on the spot where Ryou was sitting on just a while ago.

"…since Miyamoto-san's father died?" Youko knew where that statement was going and filled in the blanks, Kaori's nod confirmed this for her.

"Yes…he died from a certain illness five years ago. The boy took it rather harshly; I remember when he barely ate for days." Kaori said in a somber tone with Youko calmly taking it in.

"Ryou treasures the people close to him very dearly so it affects him a great deal if anything were to happen to any of them…" She looked at Youko.

"…And I wouldn't be at all surprised if he already added you to that list." Kaori said fondly. That part nearly caught Youko off guard and Kaori noticed that, however well Youko tried to hide it.

"He may seem uncaring and brash with people at times but that is just him being frank about what he thinks. He actually does that because he cares about that person and does not want to hide anything from them. If he didn't care about someone then he'd just completely ignore their existence." Ryou's aunt said matter-of-factly. Youko just nodded with a smile in response but that smile soon turned into a look of concern.

"But that means that he won't be able to watch the Yamayurikai play…" Youko pointed out. Kaori blinked a few times when she saw the seemingly sudden disappointment in Youko at the notion.

"And why is that of any significant consequence?" She asked the young woman. Youko slowly shook her head and took in the remainder of her tea.

"I just thought that it would be a bit disappointing, that's all…" She said before putting the now empty teacup on the table.

_I wonder if he already told Yumi-chan…or if he hasn't yet…_Youko though while looking at the small porcelain cup.

_How will the girl take the news?_

…

Yumi was working hard on trying to memorize the lines for her role in the play in her room. She could also faintly hear Yuuki doing the same in his. She suddenly heard the phone ringing downstairs but paid it no mind; she had more pressing matters to attend to. She once again tried to focus on the script when she then heard her mom call out to Yuuki, who the phone call was apparently for.

_Who could be calling him at this hour?_ Yumi randomly wondered but quickly shook of the thought. That was Yuuki's deal so she had to focus on the play! But her mind still drifted to something related to the upcoming play as well.

_And on Kanako-chan and Touko-chan as well…_Yumi thought of what was about to happen in a few days. Kanako and Touko in a confined space together is never a good idea and Yumi was once again starting to have doubts on the matter when…

_Believe in me…_

_Who believes in you…_

Yumi has a habit of hearing quotes in her head whenever she's in a tight spot huh? Regardless of reason or timing though, it has helped her before and there was no reason for it not to happen again. Yumi gave a deep breath and recomposed her resolve after recalling the words of her Onee-sama. She was not alone in this, nor should she feel like she was anymore. A lot of people that cared for her are helping her on this…

"…So there is no reason to think that this cannot be accomplished." Yumi said while looking at her copy of the script for the play. She'll get help with the lines for the play from Touko and Kanako, the rest, she will figure out when she gets there.

…

"So, you will be taking a few days off from school in a couple of weeks?" Keiichi asked after Ryou dropped the news about him going home to visit his father's grave to the rest of the Motor Club.

"That's right…I wasn't able to go there last year because of all the things that kept happening to us back then. Also, autumn is about to start and I have no desire to visit a grave in the middle of a Hokkaido Winter." Ryou explained the reason for the sudden trip back to his home town.

"Well, that makes sense." Urd commented offhandedly…yes, she was there again. Apparently, the TV at the temple is broken so she had to find other means to kill time and here we are. If any of you are wondering why no one seems to be shocked that Ryou's father is dead, that is because he already told them about it sometime last year.

"That's fine then! There's no problem with us about that here!" Tamiya declared with a bellowing voice while puffing out his chest and putting his hands on his hips. The members who were there looked at him for a while with looks of disbelief.

"Wow…that was…surprisingly considerate of you Tamiya-sempai…" Keiichi mused. A few seconds later, he wished he hadn't since he was now being Bear hugged by Tamiya for his comment. In the midst of Keiichi's cries of pain, Tamiya turned to Ryou with a serious face…while constricting Keiichi a bit more.

"Normally I would castrate you on the spot for suddenly saying that you will leave for a few days on such short notice." Tamiya told Ryou while varying amounts of cracking noises can be heard in the background. Everyone there can notice the odd, and definitely rare, sense of sincerity in Tamiya at this time…even while he continues to crack more of Keiichi's ribs.

"But this is about family so I'll let you off just this once!"

Another crack…

"Make sure you make a proper visit to your father, Miyamoto!"

And another…

"You got it sempai." Ryou said in an equally serious tone. Smiles could be seen across the room in empathy to Tamiya's words and to their fellow member.

"So…" Urd's voice suddenly interrupted the rare moment of solemn camaraderie in the room.

"…about Keiichi…" Urd pointed at the now seemingly squishy Morisato Keiichi hanging lifelessly in Tamiya's arms.

"Keiichi-san!" Belldandy finally spoke out, of concern for her beloved Keiichi of course. The whole Motor Club was suddenly thrown in a panic as they tried to revive the poor Morisato Keiichi. Ryou considered helping out but was suddenly stopped at something Yuuki asked to him in his conversation over the phone with the young man.

_How will you tell Yumi?_

"How indeed…" Ryou said to himself.

…

In the meantime, Yumi was waiting in the dining room with Sachiko for Kanako who was the only one who had not arrived yet. Touko was already waiting in the main living room of the Ogasawara mansion.

"I wonder if things will be okay?" Yumi asked tentatively to her Onee-sama. Sachiko simply smiled at her worrisome Petite Soeur.

"I'm sure it will be fine…" Sachiko barely managed to finish when both of them heard yelling from the room where Touko was.

"I guess Kanako-chan is here." Yumi said with an ironic laugh.

…

Please R&R! Pretty Please!


End file.
